Last year my wife wanted to get her PIN no so we could file online. We have never received a PIN no. from them by mail. It was a nightmare and she had to do a Zoom call with an agent, show him copies of her ss card, dr's license, etc. He then signed her up for the online account but transposed the 2nd and 3rd letter in our last name so it was obviously spelled wrong. I spent hours on the phone with a nasty agent who finally hung up on me without doing anything to correct it. When I got my letter in the mail with my PIN no. for this year's return they had also spelled my name wrong. I called the number in the letter that said to call if there was a problem. I spent over an hour on the phone wading through their useless menus trying to get this corrected before an agent told me I could snail mail my forms and wouldn't have to use the number. No shit! I knew that already but how can I get the correct spelling? He said to attach a letter explaining the problem when I mail in my forms and maybe that will help and wished me good luck. What a fuster cluck!

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Sorry for your problems. I’m thankful that I got my IRS PIN No. via snail mail without any such hassles. I have it secured in my synchronized password manager apps and have used it successfully for several years.

I’m wondering… would it be easier to get that IRS PIN No. if you have a login.gov account?

I had an account but got a letter saying I had to reactivate it this year and re-register. That letter came in the mail about the same time as the one with my new PIN No. My name was spelled correctly on my original account when I first registered. BTW, neither I nor my wife have ever received a PIN no. by snail mail until I got this one in the mail. This really sucks!

I remember getting a pin. But I don't remember having used it in at least the last ten years.

But I still keep it in my notes that I carry over from year to year.

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I use the federal electronic funds transfer (EFT) web site to make my federal tax payments. The money comes out of a specified bank account, and the transaction is virtually instantaneous, and no fee. A confirmation number is provided.

The PIN number is required for login to that site, so I need it at least four times a year.

I suggest that you login to that site just to verify your PIN in case you have an actual need for it.

I'll give it a try but I'm pretty sure if I try to file online their computers are going to reject it because the last name on my PIN will not match my last name on the rest of my tax forms, including my ss no., and 1099's, etc.

 
Apparently there are two things here. An IRS PIN number, and the IRS IP PIN (Identity Protection PIN). The IP PIN was originally offered to victims of identity theft, but is now available to all. If you have an IP PIN, you get a new one each year, via snail mail. You must enter it on your return (there is a special box just for it) or your return will be rejected. I found that out the hard way, forgetting to enter it one year. I had to refile with the IP PIN included. But that mistake gives me peace of mind that no one can file in my name.

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Interesting, Henry. I didn’t know of the Identity Protection PIN. Thanks for that tip.

Identity Protection PIN:
https://www.irs.gov/identity-t...ntity-protection-pin

Henry’s post raised a question in my mind. My state and federal tax returns are e-filed by my tax guy. I assume (and hope) that enrolled agents have an identity protection mechanism similar to, or better than, the Identity Protection PIN.