IRS Policy Statements: The Collection Rules That Sit Above the Manual

Most of the Internal Revenue Manual is procedure: do this, then this, document it here. But above the procedure sits a thinner layer of policy. These are the IRS's policy statements, and they are published in IRM 1.2.1 (rev. 2026-06-23).

IRM 1.11.6.2 (rev. 2025-09-02) lists servicewide policy statements among the core content of the IRM. In practice they read like the IRS's own statement of principles. Several of the collection statements are worth reading word for word, because they commit the IRS to restraint in places where taxpayers assume there is none.

P-5-1: enforcement is part of the system

Start with the hard one. Policy Statement 5-1, in IRM 1.2.1.6.1, says a tax system based on voluntary assessment would not be viable without enforcement programs, and that the IRS is responsible for taking all appropriate actions provided by law to compel non-compliant taxpayers to file and pay.

It draws a line between taxpayers who make a good faith effort and those who do not. The IRS is committed to educating and assisting those who try to comply. For those who have not shown a good faith effort, enforcement should be taken promptly in accordance with IRM guidelines. And once a decision to enforce has been made, the statement says, the IRS will have no hesitancy in pursuing the matter to conclusion.

That is the most important sentence in the collection policy statements for a taxpayer to understand. Good faith changes the IRS's posture. Silence does not.

P-5-2: the collecting principles

Policy Statement 5-2 lists the principles that, in its own words, must guide all decisions about collecting. Service and assistance: all taxpayers, delinquent or compliant, are entitled to courteous, responsive and effective service. Taxpayer rights: the IRS will observe taxpayers' rights, including privacy and fair and courteous treatment, in spirit as well as letter.

Compliance: employees should work with taxpayers to meet all filing and paying requirements, not only the delinquency at hand, and taxpayers must resolve both current and delinquent taxes to be considered compliant. Case resolution: from a broad range of tools, including lien, levy, seizure, installment agreement, offer in compromise, substitute for return, summons and IRC 6020(b), employees select the most appropriate, and act promptly yet judiciously based on the facts.

If you want one line that explains how Revenue Officers think, it is that one: promptly, yet judiciously.

P-5-16: forbearance when the assessment is in doubt

Policy Statement 5-16 is one taxpayers should know by number. It says that whenever a taxpayer raises a question or presents information creating reasonable doubt as to the correctness or validity of an assessment, reasonable forbearance will be exercised with respect to collection, provided the adjustment is within the IRS's control and the government's interests will not be jeopardized.

The same statement calls for reasonable forbearance on enforced collection from taxpayers whose businesses are in areas affected by major disasters that impair their ability to pay, and for forbearance when a refund suit is pending on a divisible assessment, as long as the government's interests are protected.

In practice, if you have a credible argument that the balance is wrong, raise it with documentation and cite the policy. It is not an automatic stay, but it is the IRS's own stated policy to hold back while a genuine dispute is sorted out.

P-5-34 and P-5-38: seizure is the last option

Policy Statement 5-34 (Rev. 1) says collection through seizure and sale occurs only after thorough consideration of all factors and of alternative collection methods. The taxpayer's plan to resolve past due taxes while staying current will be considered. The official deciding to seize must be satisfied that other efforts have been made. The statement lists alternatives, including an installment agreement, offer in compromise, notice of levy or lien foreclosure, and says seizure action is usually the last option in the collection process.

It also sets the approval floor: all seizures will be approved by the Collection group manager, with some seizures also requiring territory manager, area director, Director of Field Collection or judicial approval.

Policy Statement 5-38 (Rev. 1) says seizure of property on private premises will not be made without the written consent of the person in possession or a court order, except in exigent circumstances, such as when property is being removed to put it beyond the government's reach. Even then, forcible entry will not be made if it would cause a breach of the peace or a confrontation.

Policy Statement 5-40 adds that arrangements for the welfare and safety of livestock and domestic animals must be planned before a seizure involving them.

Levies: P-5-28 and P-5-29

Policy Statement 5-28 acknowledges that the Code allows as many successive levies as necessary, but says sound judgment should be exercised and successive levies on the same income or property should be timed to avoid undue hardship to the taxpayer and family.

Policy Statement 5-29 says that, although a levy legally attaches to gross wages subject to the statutory exemptions, for administrative expediency a wage levy will be considered as attaching only to take home pay, unless the taxpayer is voluntarily allotting pay to defeat the levy.

Policy Statement 5-39 (Rev. 1) says taxpayers who incur bank charges because of an erroneous IRS levy, or a direct debit installment agreement processing error by the IRS, may file a claim for reimbursement, including a bank's customary levy processing charge and overdraft charges that directly result.

Liens: P-5-47

Policy Statement 5-47 says a notice of lien shall not be filed, except in jeopardy cases, until reasonable efforts have been made to contact the taxpayer in person, by telephone or by mailed notice, to give an opportunity to pay. It says all pertinent facts must be considered because filing may adversely affect the taxpayer's ability to pay.

The same statement says a lien notice must be filed before levy on property in the taxpayer's possession, and before final demand if there is a reasonable probability of later suit.

Offers and not collectible status

Policy Statement 5-100 is titled Offers will be Accepted. It says the IRS will accept an offer when it is unlikely the liability can be collected in full and the amount offered reasonably reflects collection potential, calls an offer a legitimate alternative to not collectible status or a protracted installment agreement and says the employee assigned the case will discuss the compromise alternative and, when necessary, help prepare the forms. The taxpayer must make the first specific proposal.

Policy Statement 5-89 is the counterweight: an offer may be rejected if acceptance might be detrimental to the government's interests, even if the amount offered is more than could otherwise be collected. Policy Statement 5-97 says submitting an offer does not automatically stay collection, but if the offer merits consideration and delay will not jeopardize the government, collection will be withheld while it is considered.

Policy Statement 5-71 says accounts are generally reported currently not collectible when the taxpayer has no assets or income subject to levy, and may be when levy would create a hardship by preventing the taxpayer from meeting necessary living expenses, as distinguished from mere inconvenience.

How to use the policy statements

Policy statements are short, signed and quotable. When a procedure seems to leave room for judgment, the policy statement often tells you which way the IRS has said that judgment should lean. Cite them by number when you ask for forbearance, push back on a premature seizure or propose an offer. For how they sit alongside delegation orders, see IRS Delegation Orders.

They are not statutes and they do not override the Code. But they are the IRS's own written word on how it intends to behave. Holding an agency to its own word is not aggressive. It is just reading.