In News Release IR-2020-233[1] the IRS announced that CP14 and CP14 IA notices of amounts due to the IRS will come with a QR code. These codes will enable taxpayers to navigate the IRS website to deal with the matter at hand.

A QR code is a square bar code used often for individuals with a smartphone to navigate to a website online by pointing the phone’s camera at the QR code rather than typing in a website address. The code below, when read with a QR reading program installed on a phone, takes the individual to the English Wikipedia mobile page:

(Source: Wikipedia entry on QR codes, By brdall - Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons by Liftarn using CommonsHelper., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12185494 )

The release indicates the IRS will begin sending out these QR codes on notices in October of 2020. The release notes:

Taxpayers can now use their smartphones to scan a QR code in the CP14 or CP14 IA to go directly to IRS.gov and securely access their account, set up a payment plan or contact the Taxpayer Advocate Service.

Scanning the QR code on the CP14 or CP14 IA gives the taxpayer direct access to the information they need on IRS.gov to resolve their account balance online without the need to call or interact with the IRS directly.[2]

While currently limited to the CP14 and CP14 IA notices, the release indicates “[t]he IRS is assessing the possibility of adding other QR codes to other balance due notices in the future.”[3]

[1] IRS adds QR technology to key balance due notices to help taxpayers, News Release IR-2020-233, October 9, 2020, https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-adds-qr-technology-to-key-balance-due-notices-to-help-taxpayers (October 9, 2020)

[2] IRS adds QR technology to key balance due notices to help taxpayers, News Release IR-2020-233, October 9, 2020

[3] IRS adds QR technology to key balance due notices to help taxpayers, News Release IR-2020-233, October 9, 2020