Fax Form 4506-C to the IRS: Complete Guide (2026)

By Michael Chen · Published May 21, 2025 · Updated March 26, 2026 · 10 min read

Faxing IRS Form 4506-C is how mortgage lenders and financial institutions request tax transcripts directly from the IRS on behalf of borrowers. If you're in the mortgage industry — or if you've been handed a form to sign and want to understand what it does — this guide covers everything: the three campus fax numbers, how to complete the form without triggering a rejection, and exactly what happens after you send.

What Is IRS Form 4506-C?

Form 4506-C, officially titled "IVES Request for Transcript of Tax Return," is the IRS form that authorized third parties use to request official tax transcripts on a taxpayer's behalf. The taxpayer signs it to grant consent; the third party submits it.

The "IVES" in the name stands for Income Verification Express Service — the IRS program that manages this process. Only enrolled IVES participants can submit Form 4506-C. These are vetted institutions (mortgage companies, banks, credit unions, the SBA) that have applied to the IRS, passed a background check, and been assigned a secure digital mailbox to receive transcripts.

What transcripts can be requested?

Form 4506-C supports four transcript types:

The Return Transcript is most commonly used by mortgage lenders to verify income. The Wage & Income Transcript is useful when a borrower's W-2 or 1099 data is what matters most.

4506-C vs. 4506-T: What Changed?

If you worked in lending before 2019, you used Form 4506-T. Here's what's different now:

Since July 2019, the IRS stopped faxing or mailing transcripts to third parties through the 4506-T route. If your institution needs tax transcripts for a borrower, Form 4506-C through IVES is the only path. Individuals can still use 4506-T for their own personal transcript requests — but that goes to their own address, not a lender's.

For related IRS fax forms, see our guides on faxing IRS Form 4506-T and how to fax IRS Form 2848.

IRS Fax Numbers for Form 4506-C

Form 4506-C is faxed to one of three IRS Service Centers. Your assigned campus is determined when you enroll in the IVES program — you cannot choose. Faxing to the wrong campus will cause processing delays or non-processing.

Additional IVES fax number: If you're a new institution applying to enroll in the IVES program, submit Form 13803 (IVES Application) to 844-251-8254.

Fax timing: Requests received after midnight Eastern time are considered received the next business day. Batches are limited to 50 tax periods per fax submission.

How to Complete Form 4506-C

The IRS uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to process these forms automatically. Typed/digital forms process faster and have a significantly lower rejection rate than handwritten forms. Always complete Form 4506-C digitally.

Required fields — line by line

Lines 1a / 1b — Taxpayer name and TIN Enter the taxpayer's name exactly as it appears on their tax return. The SSN must be formatted with hyphens: XXX-XX-XXXX. EINs also require hyphens. Incorrect formatting causes automatic rejection.

Lines 2a / 2b — Spouse information (joint returns only) Both spouses must be listed, and both must sign. Missing the spouse signature is one of the top rejection causes.

Lines 3 & 4 — Addresses Line 3 is the current mailing address; Line 4 is the prior address if different. Both must match IRS records.

Line 5a — IVES Participant information Enter your company name, address, and the delegate's user-ID (your SOR mailbox number). Lines 5aii and 5aiii should remain blank — these are for IRS use only.

Line 5b — Customer file number (optional) Up to 10 numeric characters. Do not include the borrower's SSN, ITIN, or EIN here.

Line 5d — Client company name and address (mandatory) The end-client company that will use the transcript. This field is mandatory — forms missing Line 5d are rejected.

Line 6 — Tax form number Enter only one return type (e.g., 1040, 1065, 1120). If you need transcripts for multiple return types, submit separate Form 4506-C for each.

Lines 6a / 6b / 6c — Transcript type Check one box to select the transcript type (Return, Account, or Record of Account).

Line 7 — Wage and income transcript List up to 3 information return types (W-2, 1099, 1098, 5498), or leave blank if requesting all types. Do not write "N/A" — leave it blank.

Line 8 — Tax year(s) Enter each tax period end date in MM/DD/YYYY format. Each period requiring a transcript must be listed separately. For quarterly returns, list each quarter.

Signature block All taxpayers named on the form must sign and date. The form is valid for 120 days from the signature date — submissions outside this window are rejected. Authorized representatives must check the designated box and attach Form 2848.

The IVES Cover Sheet: Required Since June 2022

Every fax batch must include an approved IVES cover sheet. Forms received without a proper cover sheet are not processed.

The cover sheet must include:

• Your company name, IVES Participant ID, address, phone, and fax number
• For each form in the batch: taxpayer name, last 4 digits of TIN, tax year(s), and form number requested
• Total number of transcript years requested across the entire batch

Treat the cover sheet as page 1 of every fax. If you need a template, our fax cover sheet guide has downloadable formats you can adapt.

Step-by-Step: How to Fax Form 4506-C

Common Mistakes That Cause Rejections

The rejection rate for faxed Form 4506-C submissions is 30–40%. Most rejections are preventable. Here are the most common causes:

Form preparation errors

• ✓Handwritten entries — always complete the form digitally; OCR cannot reliably read handwriting
• ✓White-out, strikethroughs, or crossed-out text — any alteration triggers automatic "altered form" rejection; start over with a fresh copy
• ✓SSN without hyphens — must be formatted XXX-XX-XXXX; same for EIN
• ✓Outdated form version — must be Rev. 10-2022 or later
• ✓Multiple return types on one form — 1040 and 1065 require separate Form 4506-C submissions
• ✓"N/A" in Line 7a — leave blank rather than writing N/A

Signature and authorization errors

• ✓Missing spouse signature on a jointly filed return
• ✓Form signed more than 120 days ago — the form is no longer valid and must be re-signed
• ✓E-signature outside the designated area or missing the required confirmation checkbox
• ✓No Form 2848 attached when an authorized representative signs on behalf of the taxpayer

Submission errors

• ✓Missing IVES cover sheet — required for every fax batch since June 6, 2022
• ✓Faxing to the wrong IRS campus — must match your assigned campus from enrollment
• ✓Batch exceeds 50 tax periods per fax submission
• ✓Line 5d blank — client company name and address is mandatory
• ✓SSN or TIN included in the customer file number field (Line 5b)

Processing Times & What Happens After You Fax

Here's the complete timeline after your fax reaches the IRS:

If no transcript appears in your SOR mailbox within 10 business days, resubmit the request with "Second Request" noted on the cover sheet.

One important note: transcript delivery goes only to your Secure Object Repository mailbox — it cannot be faxed, emailed, or mailed to the taxpayer or to any other address. Borrowers who want a copy of their transcript for their own records must request it separately through their IRS online account.

For Borrowers: What You're Signing

If you've been handed Form 4506-C to sign during a mortgage application or SBA loan process, here's what it does:

You're authorizing your lender to request your tax transcripts directly from the IRS. The transcripts go to the lender (via their secure IVES mailbox), not to you. The lender uses them to verify your income.

Key points for borrowers:

• The form expires 120 days after you sign it
• Your lender pays a $4 fee per transcript — there's no charge to you
• You can see what transcripts were requested by checking your IRS online account
• Signing this form does not give the lender permanent access to your tax records — only for the specific years listed on Line 8

For a broader overview of how faxing tax documents to the IRS works, see our complete guide to faxing the IRS.

IVES Program: Enrollment Overview

If your institution is not yet enrolled in IVES, here's what the process looks like:

1. Submit Form 13803 (IVES Application) by fax to 844-251-8254
2. IRS suitability review — background check on the company and its principals
3. Sign certification documents — two certifications required
4. Complete e-Services registration — choose WebUI, A2A (API), or standard fax
5. Campus assignment — you're assigned to Austin, Kansas City, or Ogden
6. Begin submitting — you receive your 6-digit Participant ID and SOR mailbox credentials

Processing times for enrollment vary. Contact IVES participant assistance at ts.ives.participant.assistance@irs.gov for status updates.

For individual one-off transcript requests outside of IVES, see our guide on faxing IRS Form 4506-T.

Send Your Fax Now

Whether you're sending a single Form 4506-C or batching dozens of requests, you don't need a physical fax machine to do it.

mFax lets you fax directly from your phone or computer — upload your completed PDF, enter the IRS campus fax number, and send with delivery confirmation. Trusted by 5 million users with a 98% delivery success rate and a 4.8-star App Store rating.

Quick reference:

Processing: 2–3 business days after IRS receipt · Form version: Rev. 10-2022 or later · Batch limit: 50 tax periods · Fee: $4.00 per transcript (paid by IVES participant)