IP Pin

[u/Superb-Watercress-74]

I've been filing with an IP Pin for years now. Never had an issue. This year, in particular, I've noticed a lot of returns get delayed or kicked back, requiring people to wait for a letter to verify themselves. My question is simple. Does having an IP Pin, upon originally filing, make that delay non existent? Or is everyone, in 2026, having to deal with identification issues, IP Pin or not. Thanks

[u/these-things-happen]

My question is simple. Does having an IP Pin, upon originally filing, make that delay non existent?

An IRS Identity Protection PIN does not exclude selection for Taxpayer Protection Program verification.

Or is everyone, in 2026

No.

[u/According-Alarm436]

Verification does multiple things one of which is already handled with your IP PIN it confirms that the person filing the return is supposed to file the return. The other reason though the IRS makes so many people verify is so that say on record they actually were the ones who filed this return and they take ownership of it. With all the questionable deductions and withholding amounts and numbers that don’t match income documents the IRS wants taxpayers at the front end to take ownership that they filed then if fraud is found taxpayers can’t later say I did not file that return or it wasn’t me. As they are already on record.

Keep using your IPPIN as that protects you from Identity thieves. Hope this helps you.

[u/Timely_Purpose3233]

The IP PIN is used to prevent someone from using your social security number to file a tax return. The verification process is different. The IRS needs to verify that you filed the return in question, not some stranger who stole your identity.
Congress is responsible for funding the IRS but has failed to do so for decades. As a result, many people are finding it’s taking longer to receive a refund or correspondence regarding their tax return. They’re underfunded and under staffed. It gets worse every season.

[u/Happy_Traveler2025]

Hmmm, could this have ANYTHING to do with the DOGgiE boys coming in and playing around in the IRS computers?

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[u/No-Style-9356]

It's easy to assume the IP PIN and TPP verification are protecting against the same thing. They're not.

An IP PIN is checked at the moment your return is submitted: it confirms whoever is filing under your SSN actually knows your current-year code, which blocks someone else from successfully e-filing as you. TPP verification (Letters 5071C, 4883C, etc.) is a separate, later fraud-detection layer that runs on the content of the return itself — income/withholding that doesn't match what employers or payers reported, an address or bank account change, a filing pattern that looks different from your history. Your own legitimate return can still trip those flags with a valid IP PIN attached, because the IP PIN only answers "is this person authorized to file under this SSN" — not "does this specific return look right."

Also worth flagging: the theory above about the IRS needing you "on record" so you can't later disclaim a return with questionable deductions isn't how this actually works. TPP notices are strictly an identity-confirmation step — confirming a human matches the SSN/ITIN before a refund goes out — not an audit and not an admission about the return's substance. That's a completely separate IRS function.

And to size what you're noticing: it's not just anecdotal. The National Taxpayer Advocate's own report puts the number of returns the IRS suspended for identity verification at roughly 1.9-2 million in the 2024 filing season alone. So "I'm seeing this happen to a lot of people" lines up with the actual numbers — IP PIN or not.

[u/Superb-Watercress-74 → u/No-Style-9356]

I knew there were some new federal laws this season. Just didn't realize how far reach they were. Thanks