Getting into your IRS online account from the UK

Can you use an IRS online account if you live in the UK

Yes. The IRS frequently asked questions on the account say it can be used by individual taxpayers who have international addresses, so a UK address does not shut you out. The account covers individuals only. Business accounts are a separate service, and a UK company with US filings does not use this route.

The IRS online account page (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) is the front door, and the sign-in screen tells new users to have photo identification ready. Living abroad changes nothing about who may use the account. It changes how hard the identity check can be, because some of the data an automated check relies on is harder to match for someone whose documents, phone and address are all outside the United States.

The account matters more for people abroad than for people in the US. IRS letters reach a UK address slowly by international post, and the IRS says that most notices now have digital copies in the account. For Americans whose returns are prepared by our individual tax returns team, the account is also the quickest way to confirm that a return has posted and that a payment has been applied to the right year.

What do you need to verify your identity with ID.me from abroad

You need a Social Security number or ITIN, a valid government photo ID, a personal email address and a way to complete multifactor authentication. The IRS lists a passport or passport card among the accepted photo IDs, which suits most Americans in Britain, and you must be 18 or older to create an account.

The IRS page on creating an account for IRS.gov (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) describes the setup. You choose a password of at least eight characters and add multifactor authentication through an authenticator app, face or fingerprint recognition, or a mobile phone that can receive texts. An authenticator app works the same way on a British phone as an American one, which removes one common worry. The ID.me help site has separate articles for people who live outside the United States.

Self-service verification asks for a photo of the identity document and a selfie taken with a smartphone or webcam. The IRS says that selfie, video and biometric data collected for IRS verification is deleted automatically, except where there is suspicious or fraudulent activity. Your name must match the records of the Social Security Administration. A mismatch produces a specific error, covered further down.

• A Social Security number or ITIN, which the IRS requires for verification
• A valid government photo ID, with a US passport accepted
• A personal email address and a password of at least eight characters
• An authenticator app, face or fingerprint recognition, or a text-capable phone
• A smartphone or computer with a camera for the selfie step

What can you do in the account once you are in

You can see your balance by tax year, your payments, key figures from filed returns, transcripts and digital copies of most notices. You can pay, set up or revise a payment plan, request an Identity Protection PIN, and approve some authorisations from a tax professional. For someone in the UK, that replaces much of the international post.

The IRS says the balance reflects the data it holds when you sign in, so a zero balance can change once a return posts or an adjustment is made. Payments can be made from a bank account the same day or scheduled ahead, and cancelled before their date. Anyone who owes and cannot pay in full can look at payment plans and installment agreements (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) inside the account. Transcripts are free to download under the records tab.

The account is also where an Identity Protection PIN is requested. The IRS says a PIN is valid for one calendar year, a new one is generated each year, and people who enrolled online must retrieve it from the account each year because no letter is posted. Notices are worth checking online, but the IRS still asks you to read your post, since not every letter appears digitally.

• Balance owed by tax year and up-to-date payment history
• Tax return and account transcripts, downloaded without charge
• Digital copies of most IRS notices and letters
• Payments, scheduled payments and payment plan requests
• Identity Protection PIN requests and yearly retrieval
• Approval of some authorisation requests from a tax professional

What happens if ID.me verification fails from the UK

You can switch to a video call with an ID.me agent. The IRS describes a Trusted Referee process, offered after repeated self-service failures, in which you upload alternative documents and speak to an agent by video. You can also choose the video route before starting, skipping the self-service attempt altogether.

Take a US citizen employed in Leeds who took her British husband's surname on marriage and renewed her passport in that name. Her Social Security record still shows her birth name. Self-service verification fails, and the error the IRS lists for this case says her name does not match the records of the Social Security Administration. The IRS suggests the name on ID.me may need updating. The fix is to make the two names agree before trying again.

The IRS lists a second error that catches people abroad: verifying without an SSN or ITIN, which the IRS requires. Someone who set up ID.me for another government service without entering a number must add one before the IRS account will open. Where the problem is the paperwork rather than the login, our IRS representation work covers dealing with the IRS on your behalf.

How to get transcripts and IRS help without an online account

You can order transcripts by mail or phone, send Form 4506-T, or call the IRS international line. The IRS transcript FAQs confirm that people living outside the United States can request transcripts, and mailed transcripts go only to the address the IRS has on file. If that address is old, file Form 8822 first.

The IRS says a mailed transcript is never forwarded, and a change of address takes several weeks to process. If the details you enter for a mail or phone order do not match IRS records, the fallback is Form 4506-T, which covers every transcript type by post. The IRS also offers a route to some information without signing in, from the sign-in page itself.

For account questions, the IRS page for contacting an office internationally (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) lists the International Taxpayer Service line, which is not toll-free and runs on weekdays from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern time. It also gives a fax for international account issues and a postal address in Philadelphia. The IRS live chat needs an active online account, and in-person service at foreign posts is no longer offered.

• Order a transcript online by mail or through the automated phone service
• Use Form 4506-T when your details do not match IRS records
• File Form 8822 first if your UK address is not on file
• Call the international line, which is not toll-free
• Keep every paper letter, since not all notices appear in the account

Can your accountant use your online account for you

No. The IRS says only the taxpayer should sign in and credentials should never be shared. An adviser gets access through an authorisation instead: a power of attorney on Form 2848 or a tax information authorisation on Form 8821. Some requests can be approved inside the account, but not usually from a UK address.

A tax professional can send an authorisation request through the IRS Tax Pro Account, and you approve it under Authorizations in your own account. The IRS says that route needs the taxpayer to have an address in a US state or the District of Columbia that matches its records. With a UK address on file, the adviser sends a signed Form 2848 (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) through the IRS online submission service, by fax or by post.

Only attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents and certain other practitioners can hold a power of attorney, as our post on choosing a US tax accountant in London explains. Once it is on file, the adviser can pull transcripts and speak to the IRS for you, which helps when ID.me will not cooperate. The IRS page on understanding a notice or letter (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) is still worth reading before anyone replies.

When the account is most useful during the filing year

The account is most useful around the dates that matter abroad. The US return is due 15 April, extended automatically to 15 June for filers living outside the US, with interest still running from 15 April. Checking the balance before paying avoids paying the wrong year from a UK bank.

After filing a Form 1040, the account shows when the return has posted and whether the IRS has changed anything. If you extend with Form 4868 to 15 October, a payment made through the account by the original date limits interest. A refund owed to you needs a US bank account, as our post on getting your IRS refund in the UK explains, and a CP53E notice is answered through the account.

The IRS guidance for taxpayers living abroad (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) sets out the wider rules, and Publication 54 (opens the official IRS page in a new tab) is the full reference. If a notice in the account points to a past error, an amended return on Form 1040-X may follow. The full filing cycle, from residence to credits, is in our guide for Americans in the UK, and you can contact us about your own records.