The IRS E-File Payments

Phone Number & Getting a Rep

The IRS E-File Payments number

888-353-4537
Toll-free·Calls E-File Payments·See main phone number & contact info
Q:

How do I talk to a human at this The IRS number?

A:Keep pressing 0
Q:

Does this phone number work 24/7?

A:Yes! This phone number operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The least busy day is Wednesday, and the most busy day is Thursday. See below for more and to learn where this data comes from.
Q:

How long will I have to wait to speak to The IRS E-File Payments?

A:The average hold time is 11 minutes. The longest hold times are on Thursday, and the shortest are on Friday.

All The IRS customer service contact information

This is the #10 most popular The IRS phone number out of 10. Click above to go back to the main customer service number and other contact information, including The IRS email addresses, twitter handles, and live chat options.

More The IRS Customer Phone Numbers

Customer Service

800-829-1040
Main phone number · Toll-free · Mon-Fri 7am-7pm EST · Press 1 for English, then press 2 for Personal Income Taxes, and then push 1, then 3, then 2, then 0# when it asks for your social security number, then 2 · Refund, or check status of tax return, press 1. Eligibility, clean vehicle credit, tax transcripts, tax reform law, press 2. Answers about your business taxes, press 3. Healthcare law, press 4. Personal or business taxes as they relate to healthcare, press 5. FAQ or to make a one-time payment, press 6. Questions about stimulus payment, press 7. Advance child action payment, press 8.

Business Accounts

800-829-0115
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 8am-8pm EST · Select English, then 3, then 0#, 0#, 0# · If you received a notice about employment tax forms 940, 941, 943, 944, 945, press 1. Balance due and want to make a payment, press 2. For all other questions, press 3.

Federal Payment Levy Program

800-829-7650
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 7am-7pm EST · Use this number for the Federal Payment Levy Program · Stimulus payments, 800-919-9835. To access account information, please enter your social security number or tax ID number for which you are calling.

CP32A Refund Check Customer Service

800-829-0922
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 7am-7pm EST · Press 1, then 1, then 0#, then 0#, then 0# · Stimulus payments, visit the website or call 800-919-9835. To access account information, please enter your social security number or tax ID number for which you are calling.

Collections Department

800-829-3903
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 7am-7pm EST · Choose English, then 0#, 0#, 0# · Stimulus payment information, press 3. Notice or letter you received, press 1. Check status of refund, press 2.

Tax Professionals

800-829-8374
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 8am-8pm EST · Select English, then 1, then 0#, 0#, 0# · Stimulus payment information, press 3. Notice or letter you received, press 1. Check status of refund, press 2.

Tax Law Questions

800-829-0582
Toll-free · Mon-Fri 8am-8pm EST · Press 1 for English, then enter extension 652 · Please wait; a representative will answer the call.

Wage & Income Transcript

800-908-9946
Toll-free · 24 hours, 7 days · Automated--enter your Social Security Number to retrieve your wage and income transcript · Transcript Order Line - enter the social security number from which you are calling.

International Customer Service

267-941-1000
Mon-Fri 6am-11pm EST · Calling this The IRS number should go right to a real human being · Stimulus payments or child tax payments, visit the website, individual I10 number, press 2. US certifications or forms 6166, press 3. Calling outside the United States, press 4. If you have an extension code, press 5. All other callers, press 6.

How do I get through the phone menu to a real live person?

GetHuman researchers routinely call this The IRS phone number to document the phone system.
Here is our latest tip for weaving through the phone menu to get to a real person the fastest: Keep pressing 0
Here is how our research team describes the way the The IRS phone system greets you: Enter your tax ID number followed by the pound sign.

What are the hours and when should I call?

The IRS operates the call center for this 888-353-4537 phone number 24 hours, 7 days. The short answer is that you should call on a Wednesday. This observation and the following section are based on analysis of a sample set of 384,386 calls made in the last 90 days using our free, web-based phone (see above).
An important note: busy times vs hold times vs best time to call
When we refer to busy or less busy times, we are talking about the volume of calls. The busiest times are when the most people are calling this The IRS phone number (least busy times have fewer people calling). This high call volume does not necessarily mean that you will have a long hold time when you call. Companies like The IRS staff their call centers differently based on the time of day and day of the week, so you may experience a shorter wait on hold at the busiest of times. When we refer to the best time to call, we are referring to the optimal combination of lower call volume and shorter wait times.

The least busy time to call

The least busy day to call The IRS is Wednesday. The most busy day to call is Thursday. Again, this is based on a sample of 384,386 calls made with our AI-powered, web-based phone in the last 90 days.

The shortest wait on hold

We measured the shortest hold times to be on Friday. The longest wait in the queue on average occurs on Thursday.

The best time to call

In summation, the best day to call The IRS is Wednesday. This is not the day with the shortest wait on hold in the phone system, but we still recommend it for its ideal combination of low call volume and short hold times. Plus we believe that The IRS staffs the call center well on Wednesday.

Calling this The IRS Customer Number

Adam Goldkamp is the editor / author responsible for this content.
Nov 17, 2023

Calling the IRS to receive assistance with tax filing, payments or questions can be a daunting endeavor. First, there are several different phone numbers associated with various departments. The number I called immediately asked for my 10-digit tax identification number in order to process electronic tax payments. Since I wasn't calling to make a payment, I bypassed this recording by pressing 0 and within less than a minute was transferred to a customer service representative.

He asked if I was calling to make a payment, and I said no, yet I wanted to gather some information about preparing for the 2023 tax season. I explained that I work from home and wanted to be prepared for filing taxes as a contract worker. Rather than answer my questions, he asked if I had an employer or tax ID number for filing or if I used my Social Security number. After answering that I just use my Social, he proceeded to explain that he works only in the payment processing department and I would need to call another number.

However, he warned me that calling this number would lead to a variety of prompts and recordings that could be tedious since apparently the automated system was recently changed and does not direct you to a tax agent right away. He suggested I could follow the prompts and even attempt to press 0 to reach an agent but advised I could be on hold for more than an hour. 

Aghast at the potential of lengthy wait time, I asked the rep if there were other options he could recommend or if perhaps the IRS website would be a more efficient and effective use of time. He went on to explain that it's been a challenge for some time for the IRS to hire enough people to answer the phone and address taxpayers' questions. Instead, he recommended visiting a local tax counseling center for immediate assistance to address any of my concerns or questions. These local counselors are also the best way to ask any tax filing questions at no cost.

In addition, he shared that the website does offer a multitude of resources and articles regarding changes to tax filing and documents, but it can be confusing at times if a taxpayer needs clarification on which forms to use. The website also provides interactive online tools that can be a good first stop for figuring out what is needed for filing, he shared. 

He also admitted that the best reason to call the IRS is to speak with someone if you're unable to make a tax payment, are behind in your payments or if you've received a letter/email from the IRS asking you to contact the agency. I was pleasantly surprised and grateful at his willingness to be helpful in spite of my reaching the wrong department. However, it seems the best first step is to access information needed is the IRS' website.

Adam has been tirelessly trying to help customers find the best tips and tricks to get through phone trees and writing many guides for prickly customer service problems. He's been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Inside Edition and Bloomberg.

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