IRS Notices
IRS CP297 Notice: What It Means, Your Deadline, and What to Do (2026)
The short answer: a CP297 notice is the IRS's Final Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing, usually sent to businesses. You have 30 days from the notice date to pay, set up an arrangement, or request a Collection Due Process hearing before the IRS can legally seize your assets.
⏱ Your deadline: 30 days from the date printed on the CP297. Request a Collection Due Process (CDP) hearing within that window — using Form 12153 — and the IRS must pause levy action. Miss it, and the IRS can begin levying bank accounts and receivables without warning you again.
Why you got a CP297
A CP297 means the IRS believes your business owes a tax balance it has already billed you for several times, and the automated collection process has reached its final stage. By the time this notice arrives, earlier reminders went unanswered or unresolved, and the IRS is now telling you — in writing, by certified mail — that it intends to levy.
"Levy" means seizure. The IRS can take money from your business bank accounts, intercept payments customers owe you (accounts receivable), and reach other assets to satisfy the debt. The CP297 is your formal warning before that happens. The IRS explains the notice itself on its page, Understanding your CP297 notice.
Many CP297s involve unpaid employment (payroll) taxes — the amounts you withhold from employees' paychecks plus the employer share. The IRS treats payroll tax debt as a top priority because part of that money was never the business's to keep, so these cases move fast.
What happens if you ignore it
The CP297 is near the end of the collection sequence, not the beginning. There are very few notices left after it — which means very little time. Here's where this notice sits and what follows if you do nothing:
- Earlier balance-due notices — the IRS billed you and sent reminders. Penalties and interest grew the whole time.
- CP297 (you are here) — Final Notice of Intent to Levy with hearing rights. The 30-day clock is running.
- Day 31 and beyond — if no hearing was requested and no arrangement is in place, the IRS can issue levies on bank accounts and receivables, and file a Notice of Federal Tax Lien against business property.
- Trust Fund Recovery Penalty — when payroll taxes are involved, the IRS can assess the unpaid trust-fund portion personally against owners, officers, or anyone responsible for paying it. That debt can outlive the business itself.
In 2026 this matters more than ever. IRS staffing is stretched thin, but levies and liens are issued by automated systems that don't take a day off. The machine keeps moving on its schedule whether or not a person ever reviews your file. The 30 days on your notice are the lever you still control.
First: confirm the CP297 is accurate
Before you respond, take a short time to verify what the IRS is claiming. A wrong assumption here is expensive.
- Check the tax period and balance against your own records and filed returns. Does the notice match the years and amounts you expected?
- Look for missing payments or credits. Deposits or returns that posted late or to the wrong period can inflate the balance. Recent payments sometimes cross in the mail with the notice.
- Screen for scams. A real CP297 comes by postal mail — never email, text, or a phone call demanding gift cards or a wire transfer. Real payments go only to the United States Treasury or through IRS.gov. If you're unsure a letter is genuine, our guide on how to tell if an IRS letter is real walks through the checks.
If you think the balance is wrong, you can raise that inside the Collection Due Process hearing — which is one more reason to file the request on time rather than ignoring the notice.
How a CP297 compares to other levy notices
The CP297 belongs to a small family of final-warning notices. They all give the same 30-day hearing right; they just go to different taxpayers or come from different parts of the IRS:
- CP297 — Final Notice of Intent to Levy, generally sent to businesses.
- CP90 — the same final levy notice, generally sent to individuals.
- LT11 / Letter 1058 — a Final Notice of Intent to Levy issued by IRS field collection, with the same 30-day hearing window.
If you've also received a CP504 notice, that's an earlier step — a notice of intent to levy your state refund — but it does not carry the full Collection Due Process hearing rights that the CP297 does. The CP297 is the one that opens the door to a formal hearing, and the one that lets the IRS reach your bank accounts.
Your options if you can't pay in full
The notice frames it as pay-or-be-levied, but the IRS has several programs. Which one fits depends on your business's finances:
- Installment agreement — a monthly payment plan that keeps the business operating while you pay down the balance. See the IRS payment plans page for the basics.
- Currently Not Collectible status — if paying anything right now would genuinely threaten the business's survival, the IRS may pause active collection until your finances improve. The debt remains, but levies stop.
- Offer in Compromise — settling for less than the full balance. It's real, but only when your assets and income truly can't cover the debt. The IRS runs the math; an experienced tax professional can tell you whether you're actually a candidate before you spend time pursuing it.
- Penalty relief — first-time abatement or reasonable-cause relief can remove certain penalties, lowering the total. This won't erase the tax itself, but it can shrink the bill.
- Collection Due Process hearing — filed within 30 days, this pauses the levy and gives you a forum to propose any of the above, dispute the amount, or raise the lien.
How to respond to a CP297, step by step
- Note the deadline first. Write the 30-day date from the notice on your calendar today. Everything else depends on it.
- Verify the balance against your returns and payment records. Pull your IRS account transcripts if anything looks off.
- If it's correct and you can pay: pay before the deadline at IRS.gov/payments — that stops the levy process.
- If you can't pay in full: request a Collection Due Process hearing on Form 12153 within 30 days. This pauses enforcement and protects your appeal rights while you arrange a resolution.
- If payroll taxes are involved or the balance is large: get a professional review now. The Trust Fund Recovery Penalty can reach owners personally, and the order in which you address returns, penalties, and the balance changes the outcome.
If the IRS misses your hearing request or you simply can't get through, the Taxpayer Advocate Service is an independent organization inside the IRS that can help when normal channels break down.
Holding a CP297 with the clock running?
Send us a photo of the notice. An experienced tax professional will decode exactly where you stand, confirm your real deadline, and lay out your options to stop a levy — free, confidential, no pressure.
CP297 questions, answered
Is a CP297 notice serious?
Yes — it's one of the most serious collection notices the IRS sends. A CP297 is a Final Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing. After the 30-day deadline passes, the IRS can legally seize business bank accounts, receivables, and other assets without contacting you again.
How long do I have to respond to a CP297?
You have 30 days from the date printed on the notice to request a Collection Due Process hearing using Form 12153. Filing on time pauses levy action and preserves your appeal rights. Miss the 30 days and the IRS can begin levying, though you may still request an Equivalent Hearing for up to one year.
What's the difference between a CP297 and a CP90?
They are the same type of notice — a Final Notice of Intent to Levy with hearing rights — sent to different taxpayers. The CP297 generally goes to businesses, while the CP90 generally goes to individuals. Both give you 30 days to request a Collection Due Process hearing before the IRS can levy.
Can I stop a CP297 levy if I can't pay in full?
Yes. Requesting a Collection Due Process hearing on time pauses the levy. From there you can propose an installment agreement, ask for Currently Not Collectible status if paying would cause hardship, or — if you genuinely qualify — pursue an Offer in Compromise. The goal is a resolution in place before enforcement starts.
Does a CP297 involve payroll taxes?
Often, yes. Many CP297s involve unpaid employment (payroll) taxes, which the IRS treats as a high priority because the money includes amounts withheld from employees. Unpaid payroll taxes can also trigger the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty against owners and responsible individuals personally, so these cases need prompt, professional attention.
This guide is general information, not tax or legal advice for your specific situation. Eligibility for IRS programs depends on individual facts and circumstances; no outcome is guaranteed.