New Identity Verification Process for IRS Online Account

If you have created an online account with the IRS and have not signed in recently, you will notice some changes the next time you access your account. The IRS has launched an updated, more intense identity verification and sign-in process for several of its online tools.  As taxpayers have been taught to be mistrusting of providing information online, this new process can feel invasive to those caught off guard as to its existence.  However, the process is intended to make taxpayer information more secure and prevent access from unauthorized persons.  While going through this process takes a few minutes on the front end, online accounts provide access to information like payments posted to a taxpayer’s account in a much easier and quicker manner than attempting to call the IRS.  Recent reports indicate that only ten percent of calls to the IRS were answered during this past filing season, and improvement is not expected in the foreseeable future, making online access appealing.

This new login will be required in order to access certain IRS online services such as online account information, requesting transcripts, obtaining an identity protection pin, and entering into online payment agreements.  However, this login is not required to make an online estimated tax payment or amount due payment through Direct Pay, which does not require a traditional account login, and instead uses other identity verification measures.

Taxpayers that already have logins on irs.gov will be prompted to create an ID.me account upon sign in with their existing credentials.  The old system credentials can be used until summer 2022, but a new ID.me account must be established for online access thereafter  For taxpayers that have created an existing ID.me account from the Child Tax Credit Update Portal or from another government agency, that existing ID.me account can be used for IRS tool purposes as well.

In order to verify their identity with ID.me, taxpayers will need to take a photo of a form of identification, such as a driver’s license or passport, and then take a selfie with a smartphone or a computer with a webcam.  Specific, step-by-step instructions can be found at https://help.id.me/hc/en-us/articles/360017922513-How-do-I-verify-my-identity-.