IRS Penalty Abatement: How To Remove Tax Penalties
Penalty abatement is IRS relief that removes certain penalties. The two most common paths are First-Time Abatement, for taxpayers with a clean three year history, and reasonable cause, for situations like serious illness, disaster, or inability to get records.
Ways to qualify
- First-Time Abatement: no significant penalties in the prior three years and all returns filed.
- Reasonable cause: circumstances beyond your control despite ordinary care.
- Statutory exception or IRS error, such as incorrect written IRS advice.
How to request
Request by phone, in writing, or with Form 843. When penalties are removed, interest charged on those penalties is reduced too.
Common questions
- Can interest be abated?
- Interest on the underlying tax is rarely removed, but interest on abated penalties goes away with them.
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General information, not tax advice for your specific situation. Last reviewed 2026-10-16.