An IRS Letter 1058 is not the first letter about a tax bill, and by the time it arrives, it usually is not a surprise. A string of earlier notices typically comes first: a balance due, a couple of reminders, then a letter with sharper language than the ones before it. Letter 1058 is different from all of them. It is the final notice of intent to levy, and it means the IRS has decided it has waited long enough for a response. This letter starts a 30-day clock, and once that clock runs out, the IRS is legally cleared to take money directly from a bank account, a paycheck, or other property without sending anything else first. None of that means the situation is beyond fixing. It does mean the next 30 days matter more than the weeks that came before them, and the sooner someone acts, the more choices are still open. Calling PFGTAX at 888.572.2179 the same day the letter arrives is the fastest way to see what is still on the table.

What Letter 1058 actually says

Letter 1058 tells a taxpayer that the IRS intends to levy property, or rights to property, to collect an unpaid federal tax debt. The IRS sometimes issues the same warning as an LT11 instead of a Letter 1058. The two are functionally the same letter with different formatting, and both carry the same 30-day deadline and the same legal weight. A related notice, the CP90, covers similar ground but shows up less often than Letter 1058 or LT11 in routine collection cases.

The letter also spells out something just as important as the warning itself: the right to request a Collection Due Process hearing before any levy takes place. That right exists because federal law requires it. Under Internal Revenue Code section 6330, the IRS generally cannot levy a bank account, wages, or other property until it has given proper notice and an opportunity to be heard. Letter 1058 and LT11 are how the IRS satisfies that legal requirement, which is why the letter reads as formally as it does.

Whichever version of the letter arrives, the substance is the same. A taxpayer has 30 days from the date printed on the letter to pay the balance, set up an arrangement with the IRS, or request a hearing. Doing nothing lets that window close on its own.

The notices that came before this one

Letter 1058 rarely shows up without warning. The IRS builds toward it through a fairly predictable sequence of notices. A CP14 is usually the first bill, sent once a return is filed or adjusted and a balance is left unpaid. If that notice goes unanswered, a CP503 follows as a firmer reminder that the balance is still outstanding. After that comes a CP504, a notice that specifically warns the IRS may begin looking at bank accounts, state tax refunds, or other property to satisfy the debt.

A lot of people read a CP504 and assume it is the final warning before anything happens. It is not. A CP504 is serious, but it does not by itself satisfy the legal notice requirement the IRS needs before it can actually levy. Letter 1058, or its LT11 counterpart, is the notice that does that. Once it arrives, the 30-day countdown that matters most has begun.

That distinction matters in practice. Someone who has only received a CP504 may believe they have considerably more time to sort things out than someone holding a Letter 1058. If Letter 1058 has already been mailed, the timeline is much shorter, and some of the options that were available a few notices earlier start to narrow.

Why the 30-day window is the real deadline

Everything about a Letter 1058 revolves around that 30-day period. Tucked inside the letter is a copy of Form 12153, Request for a Collection Due Process or Equivalent Hearing. Filing that form within the 30-day window gives a taxpayer the right to have an independent officer in the IRS Office of Appeals review the case before any levy takes place. A timely request also generally pauses collection activity while the hearing is pending, which buys real time to work out a longer-term solution.

Missing the 30-day deadline does not close every door, but it does remove the automatic pause that a timely request provides. A hearing requested after the deadline is sometimes still granted, under what the IRS calls an equivalent hearing, but that version does not carry the same right to later petition the U.S. Tax Court if the outcome is unfavorable. The date printed on the letter is what the IRS counts from, not the date it was opened, read, or found at the bottom of a stack of mail.

What happens if the letter is ignored

If the 30 days pass with no response, the IRS is legally cleared to levy. For an individual, that most often means a bank levy, which freezes whatever sits in the account on the day the levy is processed, or a wage levy, which requires an employer to send a portion of every paycheck to the IRS until the balance is resolved. A levy can also reach a state tax refund, and in some situations, retirement accounts or other property. Social Security benefits can be reached too, though federal law limits how much of a benefit payment the IRS can take.

None of this happens the instant the 30 days expire. There is usually some lead time before an actual levy notice reaches a bank or an employer, since the IRS still has to identify the right account or payroll department and send its own notice to that third party. But there is no fixed, guaranteed amount of that lead time, and waiting to find out how long it will be is the riskiest way to handle a Letter 1058.

The realistic ways to respond

A handful of paths are available once a Letter 1058 arrives, and which one fits depends on the numbers behind the debt.

Paying the balance in full stops everything right away, though few people are in a position to do that on 30 days’ notice. An installment agreement spreads the balance into monthly payments the IRS can accept without moving forward with a levy, and for many balances this can be set up in a single phone call. An offer in compromise lets a taxpayer settle the debt for less than the full amount owed, though the IRS only accepts offers that reflect what it believes it can reasonably collect based on income, expenses, and assets, so not every offer that gets submitted is approved. Currently Not Collectible status is available for taxpayers who genuinely cannot pay anything right now without falling short on basic living expenses. It pauses active collection, but the balance stays on the books and interest keeps adding up while it is in place.

Requesting a Collection Due Process hearing through Form 12153 keeps all of these options on the table while a neutral appeals officer reviews the case. That is usually the first move worth making once a Letter 1058 shows up, especially if there has not been time yet to work out a longer-term arrangement.

Anyone at this stage can also bring in help. Enrolled agents, CPAs, and tax attorneys are all authorized to represent a taxpayer directly with the IRS on collection matters, and doing so does not require showing up in person. A power of attorney filed on Form 2848 lets a representative handle calls, correspondence, and negotiations directly, which matters when the same person is also trying to keep working, running a household, or running a business while all of this is happening.

What to have ready before you call for help

A phone call goes faster with a few things in hand. The letter itself matters most, since it has the notice number, the tax years covered, and the exact date that starts the 30-day clock. A rough sense of what is owed and why, whether from an audit adjustment, unpaid self-employment tax, or a return that was filed without full payment, helps determine which of the options above actually applies. Recent pay stubs, a current bank balance, and a list of monthly expenses matter too, since eligibility for an installment agreement, an offer in compromise, or Currently Not Collectible status all come down to the same basic question: what can realistically be paid, and over what period of time.

None of this needs to be perfectly organized before making the call. The point of gathering it is to move faster once someone is working the case, not to have a complete file ready before asking for help.

If a state notice looks similar

State tax agencies send their own version of a final notice before a levy, and the letter format, name, and response window vary from state to state. The core idea carries over regardless of which state sent it: a final notice, a set response window, and a levy that follows if nothing happens within it. Someone holding both an IRS Letter 1058 and a similar notice from a state agency is dealing with two separate deadlines that need two separate responses, even when both notices trace back to the same tax years.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I actually have after getting a notice of intent to levy?

Thirty days from the date printed on the Letter 1058 or LT11 itself, not the day it arrived in the mailbox or the day it was opened. That window is when a Collection Due Process hearing request through Form 12153 has to be filed to pause collection and preserve the right to appeal further if needed. If the 30 days are already tight, call PFGTAX at 888.572.2179 today so there is time to actually use them.

What is the difference between a CP504 notice and a Letter 1058?

A CP504 warns that the IRS may begin looking at bank accounts, refunds, or other property, but it does not by itself satisfy the legal notice requirement the IRS needs before an actual levy. Letter 1058, or the LT11 version of the same letter, is the one that does, and it is the letter that starts the real 30-day countdown. If a CP504 already arrived and a Letter 1058 shows up next, PFGTAX can walk through exactly where things stand and what is left to work with; call 888.572.2179.

What happens if I request a Collection Due Process hearing?

Filing Form 12153 within 30 days puts an independent officer in the IRS Office of Appeals in charge of reviewing the case before any levy moves forward, and it generally pauses collection while that review is pending. It is also the point where an installment agreement, an offer in compromise, or Currently Not Collectible status can be raised as an alternative to a levy. PFGTAX can prepare and file that request and handle the hearing directly so nothing gets missed on the paperwork.

Can the IRS still levy my wages or bank account if I already asked for a payment plan?

Once a formal installment agreement request is pending, or one has already been accepted, the IRS generally holds off on new levy action on that same balance. A request only counts once it has actually been filed and is pending. A phone call alone does not pause collection, so timing matters as much as the request itself. Calling PFGTAX at 888.572.2179 gets the right paperwork moving instead of relying on a verbal agreement.

What documents should I have ready before calling for help with an IRS LT11 or Letter 1058?

The notice itself is the most important piece, since it shows the tax years involved and the exact date the 30-day clock started. Beyond that, a rough idea of income, monthly expenses, and any recent tax returns that have not been filed yet all speed up the first conversation. Nothing needs to be perfectly organized first. PFGTAX can help sort out what is missing once the call starts, so reach out at 888.572.2179 before the deadline gets closer.

An IRS Letter 1058 does not resolve itself, and the 30 days on it move faster than they seem to at first. Call PFGTAX at 888.572.2179 now, while there is still time to request a hearing, set up an arrangement, or find out which option actually fits the numbers. A short phone call today is a much better use of the next 30 days than waiting to see what happens next.

This article is for general information only. It is not legal, accounting, or tax advice, and reading it does not create a client relationship with PFGTAX. Every tax situation is different. Talk with a licensed tax professional about your specific circumstances before acting on anything here.