The IRS doesn’t offer an online tracker for Form 2553, so to check your Form 2553 status with the IRS, call the Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933 after allowing roughly 60 days from the date you filed.1Internal Revenue Service. Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers If the election was accepted, the IRS mails Notice CP261 with your effective date. If it was denied, you’ll get Notice CP264 explaining why. If nothing arrives, the form may never have reached the IRS, and that’s the scenario you most need to catch early.
When to Start Checking
The IRS instructions for Form 2553 say you should generally receive a determination within 60 days of filing.2Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 2553 Peak filing season (January through April) can push that out. If you checked box Q1 in Part II requesting a specific fiscal tax year, add another 90 days, because the IRS issues a separate ruling letter on the tax year request.
How you filed matters too. Faxing removes the mailing lag and the risk of the form disappearing in transit. The IRS accepts faxed submissions at 855-887-7734 for states east of the Mississippi (plus certain Midwest states) and 855-214-7520 for states to the west.3Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Your Taxes (for Form 2553) Form 2553 cannot currently be e-filed.
If you mailed the form, hold off calling until at least 60 days after the postmark date. Calling sooner rarely produces useful information, because the form may not yet be entered in the system.
How to Call the IRS
The Business and Specialty Tax Line at 800-829-4933 handles S corporation election questions.1Internal Revenue Service. Telephone Assistance Contacts for Business Customers Before you dial, have ready:
- The corporation’s Employer Identification Number (EIN)
- The corporation’s exact legal name as it appears on the form
- The date you mailed or faxed Form 2553
- Proof of filing (certified mail receipt or fax confirmation) in case you need to reference it
The representative can tell you whether the form has been received, whether it’s still processing, or whether a notice has already gone out. The IRS confirms on its filing status change page that if you haven’t received an acceptance or denial, this is the number to call.4Internal Revenue Service. Filing Requirements for Filing Status Change
Only the business owner, a corporate officer, or someone authorized on a filed Form 2848 (Power of Attorney) can get account information over the phone. If you’re not one of those people, the call won’t go far.
If a Tax Professional Is Calling for You
CPAs and tax attorneys can use the Practitioner Priority Service (PPS) at 866-860-4259 instead of the general line. PPS representatives are trained on practitioner account questions and often resolve issues faster. The practitioner needs a valid Form 2848 or Form 8821 on file and must pass authentication. PPS runs weekdays, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, with a limit of five client inquiries per call.5Internal Revenue Service. Practitioner Priority Service
What the IRS Sends by Mail
Acceptance: Notice CP261
When the IRS approves the election, it mails Notice CP261 to the corporation’s address of record. The notice confirms acceptance and states the effective date of your S corporation status.6Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP261 Notice Put it in your permanent records. You’ll need it if the IRS ever questions your filing status, and banks and lenders sometimes ask for it. Once you have CP261, you file Form 1120-S for the tax year shown on the notice.7Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1120-S, U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation
Denial: Notice CP264
If the election is denied, you’ll receive Notice CP264, which tells you the IRS rejected Form 2553 and gives the reason.8Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP264 Notice Common causes are a missing shareholder signature, an ineligible shareholder, or a late filing. Some defects are fixable if you respond promptly with corrected documentation, and the IRS often allows corrections without losing the original effective date. Others require the formal relief process described below. Don’t sit on a CP264. The response window is short.
Neither Notice Arrives
Sometimes nothing shows up. The form may have been lost, sent to the wrong service center, or hung up in a processing error. This is the most dangerous outcome, because you might file Form 1120-S believing you’re an S corporation while the IRS has no record of your election. If 60 days have passed with no word, call 800-829-4933 to confirm receipt. If the IRS can’t find the form, you’ll need to refile and, depending on how much time has passed, request late-election relief.
Why Proof of Filing Matters When You Call
If the IRS has no record of your Form 2553, documentation of what you sent and when is what protects your effective date. The Form 2553 instructions specifically identify acceptable proof: a certified or registered mail receipt with a timely postmark, or the equivalent from a designated private delivery service.9Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 2553 If you faxed the form, the confirmation page showing the date, time, and IRS fax number is your equivalent.
Without that evidence, establishing that you filed on time becomes much harder, and you may lose your intended effective date entirely.
If the Call Reveals a Problem
Streamlined Late-Election Relief
If the IRS never received your form, or received it late, Revenue Procedure 2013-30 offers a streamlined path that avoids the expense of a private letter ruling.10Internal Revenue Service. Late Election Relief To qualify:
- The corporation met every S corporation eligibility requirement and failed to qualify solely because the election wasn’t filed on time.
- There’s reasonable cause for the late filing, such as reliance on a tax professional who missed the deadline.
- The entity and all shareholders reported income as if the S election were in effect for the intended year and every year since.
- Less than 3 years and 75 days have passed since the intended effective date.
You file the late Form 2553 with a statement explaining the reasonable cause and confirming consistent tax reporting, plus signed shareholder affidavits from anyone who held stock during the gap period. The IRS generally grants this relief automatically on review.
An LLC that also needs a late corporate classification election can bundle both requests, provided it timely filed all federal tax returns consistent with S corporation status.10Internal Revenue Service. Late Election Relief
When Streamlined Relief Won’t Work
If more than 3 years and 75 days have passed, or the defect is an actual eligibility failure (an ineligible shareholder, two classes of stock), the streamlined process is closed. The remaining option is a private letter ruling, which involves a formal application and a user fee published annually in Revenue Procedure 2026-1. Fees for entity classification rulings typically run into the thousands. This is a last resort, and professional help is almost always warranted.
A Note on State Elections
A CP261 from the IRS doesn’t always settle your status at the state level. Most states automatically recognize the federal election, but a handful, including New York and New Jersey, require a separate state-level election form. If your state requires one and you skip it, the state can treat your entity as a C corporation even while the IRS treats it as an S corporation. A few states also require nonresident shareholder consent agreements before honoring the federal election. Check with your state’s tax agency once your federal status is confirmed.