Balance due & the collection ladder

CP297 notice — act this week

The companion version of the final levy notice — a Final Notice of Intent to Levy that carries your Collection Due Process hearing right, issued where the standard LT11/1058 doesn't fit (for example, certain joint or successor accounts).

Last stop

What this letter is

The companion version of the final levy notice — a Final Notice of Intent to Levy that carries your Collection Due Process hearing right, issued where the standard LT11/1058 doesn't fit (for example, certain joint or successor accounts).

Why you got it: An unpaid balance reached final-notice stage on an account the standard notices don't cover.

What it is not

Not a lesser notice because the code is unfamiliar. It performs the same legal job as LT11: after it, the levy can follow.

Your first move: Treat it exactly like LT11: 30 days from the notice date to request the hearing, pay, or get a plan in place.

Your deadline, counted

Every clock runs from this date — not from the day the letter reached you.

Your options, in the order most people should try them

1. Request the hearing

The pause and the court door both depend on it being timely.

2. Pay or plan

In the 30-day window, either stops this track.

3. Dispute the balance at the hearing

Possible where you never had an earlier chance to dispute the amount itself.

Your rights on this letter

  • CDP hearing before Appeals.
  • Tax Court petition after an adverse determination (30 days).
  • Plan / offer / hardship alternatives.

How to respond

Form 12153 to the address printed on the notice — certified mail, return receipt requested.

Scam check

Check it against your IRS online account before acting; the notice there is the genuine one.

If you ignore it

Levy action can proceed once the window closes; the equivalent-hearing fallback lasts one year and does not pause collection.

Where this sits on the ladder: This letter stands on its own track — see the collection ladder for the enforcement road.

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Sources, checked 2026-10-19:
  • 26 U.S.C. 6330
  • IRS Publication 1660