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IRS CP508C Notice

Your Tax Debt Has Been Certified to the State Department

The IRS has told the State Department your debt is seriously delinquent. A passport can be denied or revoked on that basis.

What is CP508C? CP508C tells you the IRS has notified the U.S.

What This Notice Means

CP508C tells you the IRS has notified the U.S. Department of State that your federal tax debt is certified as seriously delinquent. The IRS states your passport may be revoked, and that an application for a new passport or a renewal will be denied.

The certification has conditions, and they are more specific than "you owe a lot". The IRS states seriously delinquent tax debts are legally enforceable, unpaid federal tax debt including assessed penalties and interest, totalling more than the current threshold — and that it must ALSO have filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien with administrative remedies lapsed or exhausted, or have issued a levy.

The definition is at Internal Revenue Code section 7345.

No dollar figure appears on this page on purpose. The threshold is adjusted yearly and this file holds plain strings with no render-time resolution; writing even the correct current figure in would recreate the defect that left a tax-year-2024 number on three notice records. The IRS publishes the current threshold on the page linked below.

Why You Received This Notice

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    The IRS states it identified your tax debt as meeting the definition of "seriously delinquent" in Internal Revenue Code section 7345, and gave that information to the U.S. Department of State.

Important Deadline

The IRS publishes no number of days on the CP508C page. It says to read your notice carefully, which it states explains the amount due, the due date, what you need to know, and what you need to do to prevent the State Department denying, revoking or limiting your passport.

The due date on your notice is the one that governs.

What You Should Do

  • Read the notice. The IRS states it explains the amount due, the due date, and what to do to prevent the State Department denying, revoking or limiting your passport.
  • Pay the balance in full, or arrange to pay over time.
  • If you have questions, or disagree that you owe the tax debt listed on the notice, the IRS says to contact it at the number shown on the notice.

Resolution Options That May Help

Payment Plan

Taxpayers with steady income who can afford monthly payments

OIC

Taxpayers who cannot pay their full tax liability

CNC Status

Taxpayers experiencing severe financial hardship

What NOT to Do

  • Do NOT assume the amount alone triggered this. The IRS states it must also have filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien with all administrative remedies lapsed or exhausted, or have issued a levy.
  • Do NOT assume being abroad means being stranded. The IRS states that if taxpayers with certified debts are overseas, the State Department may issue a limited-validity passport allowing a direct return to the United States.
  • Do NOT read this as the State Department having decided anything. The IRS states it certified; the State Department acts on the certification.

Frequently Asked Questions

What counts as seriously delinquent tax debt?
The IRS states: "Seriously delinquent tax debts are legally enforceable, unpaid federal tax debt (including assessed penalties and interest) totaling more than the current threshold. These debts include U.S. individual income taxes, Trust Fund Recovery Penalties, business taxes for which taxpayers are personally liable for and other civil penalties." It adds a second condition: "The IRS must have filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien, and all administrative remedies under the law have lapsed, or have been exhausted or issued a levy in their efforts to collect these debts."
What is the threshold amount?
The IRS adjusts it yearly and publishes the current figure on its passport certification page, which is linked below. This page does not restate it — a threshold copied into text goes stale silently, and that has already happened once on this site.
What happens to my passport?
The IRS states that generally the State Department will not issue passports to taxpayers after receiving a delinquent debt certification, and may also deny an application or revoke a current passport. It states that taxpayers with certified debts who are overseas may be issued a limited-validity passport allowing them to return directly to the United States.

Need Help With This Notice?

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Related Notices

CP508RYour Seriously Delinquent Certification Has Been ReversedCP504Notice of Intent to Levy (IRC §6331(d))CP90Final Notice of Intent to LevyLT11LT11 / Letter 1058: Notice of Intent to Levy and Your Right to a HearingCP523Intent to Terminate Your Installment Agreement and Levy

Recommended Next Steps

  • Find the amount due and the due date on the notice.
  • If you disagree that you owe it, the IRS names the number on the notice as the route.
  • CP508R is the notice the IRS sends when a certification is reversed. Its page describes what reversal requires.

Sources and last reviewed

Sourced to primary IRS materials and editorially reviewed on 2026-08-21. Not reviewed by a tax professional. Not tax advice. This page explains a notice in general terms and is not tax or legal advice about your situation. Always use the dates and instructions printed on the notice you actually received. Report a correction.