A CP508C notice tells you the IRS has certified your tax debt as “seriously delinquent” to the U.S. State Department — which can block or revoke your passport.
What Triggered This Notice
Per IRS.gov, a seriously delinquent tax debt is an unpaid, legally enforceable federal tax debt totaling more than $64,000 (adjusted annually for inflation) for which a Notice of Federal Tax Lien has been filed and all administrative remedies have lapsed or been exhausted, or a levy has been issued.
What It Means for Your Passport
Under federal law, the State Department must deny a new passport application and may revoke or limit an existing passport once the IRS certifies this debt.
Exceptions
The IRS will not certify debt as seriously delinquent if the account is currently classified “currently not collectible” due to hardship, or if there is an accepted adjustment that will fully satisfy the debt.
What To Do
Paying the debt in full, or reducing it below the threshold, triggers reversal of the certification. Because the $64,000 threshold combines lien filing with levy/exhausted-remedies status, resolving the underlying lien is usually the fastest path — see CP504 if you have not already received a levy warning, or explore financing to pay it off directly.
Source: IRS.gov — Revocation or Denial of Passport in Cases of Certain Unpaid Taxes
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