Form 15227 for Dependents: How to Request an IP PIN by Mail

Form 15227 is how a parent or legal guardian applies for an Identity Protection PIN on behalf of a dependent who can’t create their own IRS online account. It’s a short paper form: you enter the dependent’s name, Social Security number, and your phone number, mark the box confirming you’re applying for a dependent, sign, and send it to the IRS by mail or fax. The IRS then calls to verify identity, and the six-digit PIN arrives by U.S. mail a few weeks later.

Why Form 15227 Is the Right Route for a Dependent

The IRS offers three ways to get an IP PIN: an online IRS account, Form 15227, or an in-person visit to a Taxpayer Assistance Center. The online option is the fastest, but anyone under 18 is barred from using it and must go through one of the alternative methods.¹ For most parents, that leaves Form 15227 as the practical choice, since you can fill it out at home without booking an appointment.

An IP PIN is a six-digit number known only to you and the IRS. Enter it on the return that includes your dependent, and any return filed with that Social Security number but without the correct PIN gets rejected. That matters for children in particular: their SSNs sit unused for years, and if a thief files a fraudulent return under a child’s number, federal privacy rules prevent the IRS from even telling you who did it when the child appears only as a dependent on the other return.² The PIN shuts that door before it opens.

Who Can Use Form 15227

Your dependent has to meet all four of these conditions for you to apply on their behalf using Form 15227:

They don’t already have an IP PIN assigned.
They have a valid Social Security number or ITIN.
The adjusted gross income on your most recently filed return is under $84,000 (or $168,000 if married filing jointly).
You have a working phone where the IRS can reach you during business hours.

The income threshold is measured against the return of the person submitting the form, which for a minor child is you as the parent or legal guardian.³ If your income sits above the cap, skip ahead to the in-person option below.

Filling Out the Form for Your Dependent

The form is one page, but several fields work differently when you’re applying for a dependent rather than yourself. Every field is required; the IRS won’t process a form with blanks.

Box a, Name: Enter your dependent’s name as it appears on their most recent tax return, or, for a child who has never filed, exactly as it appears on their Social Security card. Initials are acceptable for a first or middle name that doesn’t fit, but the last name has to be complete.
Box b, Mailing address: The dependent’s current mailing address, which is usually your home address.
Box c, Dependent checkbox: Mark “Yes.” This is the field that tells the IRS you’re applying as a parent or legal guardian on behalf of a dependent.
Box d, SSN or ITIN: Your dependent’s full nine-digit number.
Box e, Phone number: The number where you, the parent or guardian, can be reached Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. For dependent applications, the IRS calls you, not the child.
Box f, Language: English or Spanish for the verification call.
Box g, Declaration: You print your own name, sign, and date the form.

Your signature on Box g is what makes the application valid for a dependent. Don’t have the child sign.³

Where to Send It

Pick one channel. The IRS specifically warns against submitting the same form by both mail and fax.

By mail: Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Fresno, CA 93888-0025. If you’re using a private carrier like UPS or FedEx, use the street address, 3211 S. Northpointe Dr., Fresno, CA 93725.
By fax: 855-807-5720 (toll-free). Include a cover sheet marked “Confidential.”

Confirm the addresses and fax number against your printed copy of the form before sending, since the form itself is the authoritative source.³

What Happens After You Send It

An IRS representative calls the number you listed in Box e to verify identity. For dependent applications the call comes to you, not to the child. Once verification is complete, the IP PIN is mailed to the address on the form, typically within four to six weeks of the call.¹

Timing matters. A Form 15227 mailed in March probably won’t produce a usable PIN before the April filing deadline. Late fall or early winter is the better window, so the PIN is in hand well before you need to file.

Using the PIN on Your Return

When you file, you enter the dependent’s IP PIN where your tax software or preparer prompts for it. It applies to Form 1040 and its variants (1040-NR, 1040-PR, 1040-SR, and 1040-SS). An e-filed return submitted with a missing or wrong IP PIN for the dependent will be rejected outright. A paper return won’t be rejected the same way, but the IRS will delay processing while it verifies the information.⁴

Store the PIN with your other tax documents. You’ll need it every year.

Renewal and Lost PINs

IP PINs aren’t permanent. The IRS generates a new one for your dependent each year and mails it on notice CP01A between mid-December and early January for the upcoming filing season.⁴ Once your dependent is enrolled, you don’t resubmit Form 15227 each year.

If the CP01A notice doesn’t arrive or you misplace it, call 800-908-4490 for help. The line runs Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, and a replacement PIN gets mailed to the address on file within 21 days.

If You Can’t Use Form 15227

Form 15227 doesn’t work for everyone. If your income is above the threshold, the IRS can’t reach you by phone, or the phone verification fails, you can take your dependent to a Taxpayer Assistance Center in person. The in-person route has no age or income limit. Bring:

One government-issued photo ID and one additional form of identification for yourself.
Two forms of identification for your dependent, such as a birth certificate and Social Security card.

After the visit, the PIN is mailed within about three weeks.¹ Whichever route you take, the result is the same six-digit number, and once your dependent has it, no return filed under their SSN goes through without it.

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Internal Revenue Service. Get an Identity Protection PIN
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Internal Revenue Service. Identity Theft Dependents
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Internal Revenue Service. Form 15227 – Application for an Identity Protection Personal Identification Number (IP PIN)
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Internal Revenue Service. FAQs About the Identity Protection Personal Identification Number (IP PIN)