No response from IRS

A plan came to me asking what is the next step.  They received an IRS notice with a penalty.  A response was sent in April 2023.  The IRS never responded and no follow up notices were ever received.  Should the client assume the IRS closed the case?  Should they call the IRS?  

There is far less peace of mind in assuming the IRS closed a case as compared to confirming that the IRS has closed a case.

The client should have in hand a copy of the IRS notice and of the response, and then call the contact number on the letter.  The agent likely will ask for information on the IRS notice including the EIN, plan number, plan name, notice number, notice date... and then search for it in their system.

If the response is not associated with the IRS notice, then the client may need to provide information from the response to see if it can be located.  This may include the address where the response was sent, date mailed, delivery service (USPS or overnight)... to see if it can be located.

Since the client has not receive a follow up notice, more than likely the case is closed.

I would not assume the case is closed, the IRS is simply that far behind. It sounds snarky, but it hasn't even been a year.