What CDP is
CDP is the procedural mechanism that lets you challenge a proposed levy or a filed lien before it's irreversible. The IRS issues you a notice — most commonly LT11, Letter 1058, CP90, or CP297 (the levy-intent family) or a Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing (the lien path) — and that notice tells you that you have CDP rights and how to request a hearing.
At the CDP hearing, an Appeals officer reviews:
- Whether the proposed collection action is appropriate;
- Any spousal-defense, innocent-spouse, or installment-agreement arguments;
- Collection alternatives (installment agreement, currently-not- collectible, offer in compromise);
- The challenge to the underlying tax liability — but only if you didn't have a prior chance to dispute the liability. If you got a CP3219A 90-day letter and let it expire, you can't re-litigate the tax in CDP.
The form: Form 12153
You request CDP by filing Form 12153 — Request for a Collection Due Process or Equivalent Hearing. The form asks why you disagree with the proposed levy or lien and lets you propose collection alternatives. Mail or fax it to the address on the levy notice (not the standard IRS service center — the address is on the notice itself).
The timing window
The IRS detail pages for CDP-bearing notices reference Publication 1660 (Collection Appeal Rights) for the statutory window rather than restating it on the per- notice page itself. Read the publication for the current window and verify against the date on your specific notice. Missing the CDP window costs you the protection — but you can still request an Equivalent Hearing, which is similar but not subject to Tax Court review.
Tax Court review of CDP determinations
If you don't agree with the Appeals officer's decision at your CDP hearing, you have the right to petition the U.S. Tax Court. The petition window is documented in the Appeals determination letter you receive at the end of the hearing process. Tax Court review is what makes CDP a genuinely protective remedy — without judicial review, the IRS would have the last word on whether to levy.
Equivalent Hearing
If you miss the CDP window, you can still request an Equivalent Hearing on Form 12153 within a longer window (also documented in Pub 1660). The Equivalent Hearing produces a similar Appeals determination, but it's not reviewable by the Tax Court. Practically, an Equivalent Hearing is still useful — Appeals officers can negotiate installment agreements, currently-not- collectible status, and other collection alternatives — but the absence of Tax Court review is a meaningful loss of leverage.
Notices that grant CDP rights
Levy CDP rights attach with these notices:
- LT11 / Letter 1058 — Final notice of intent to levy (individual taxpayer)
- CP90 — Final notice of intent to levy (alternative format)
- CP297 — Business-account levy intent
- CP298 — Social Security benefit levy intent
- CP297A and CP297C — Post-levy CDP (where pre-levy notice was statutorily bypassed)
Lien CDP rights attach when the IRS sends the Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing and Your Right to a Hearing under IRC §6320 (described generically in Pub 1660; the IRS internally refers to it as Letter 3172, though the IRS's public site does not host a detail page for that specific letter). The CDP request form is the same Form 12153, with the lien-CDP box checked.
Notably, CP504 does NOT confer CDP rights. CP504 is a notice of intent to levy state refunds — a precursor to the formal levy-intent notice that follows. CDP attaches when the formal notice arrives, not when CP504 does.
When to hire help
For any CDP hearing involving a meaningful balance, hire a credentialed professional. CPAs, Enrolled Agents, and tax attorneys can represent you in front of the IRS Appeals officer. The arguments at a CDP hearing — disputing the underlying liability where you have a prior-opportunity defense, making a collection-alternative case, raising innocent-spouse or hardship arguments — benefit from professional preparation. The Appeals officer is procedurally bound but not your advocate.