Faxing government agencies is one of the most common reasons people use Fax.Plus. Government fax lines are often heavily used and can take multiple attempts to get through, especially during peak periods. This article covers what to expect and how to maximize your chance of success on the first try.
Use a fax number from the same country as the agency
Government agencies often use localized fax systems that only accept transmissions from regional or domestic numbers. If you attempt to send a fax using an international number to a US government agency, the fax may fail to deliver, be automatically rejected, or be delayed.
- US agencies (IRS, USCIS, SSA, VA, etc.): use a US-based Fax.Plus number.
- UK agencies (HMRC, NHS, etc.): use a UK-based number.
- Canada (CRA, IRCC, etc.): use a Canadian number.
- And so on.
Faxing the IRS specifically
The IRS receives an enormous volume of faxes daily, especially between January and April (US tax season). It is normal for IRS fax lines to be busy on first attempt. Here's how to maximize success:
Pick the right time of day. IRS fax lines are most congested between 10am and 2pm Eastern Time. Faxing early in the morning (8-10am ET) or later in the afternoon (3-5pm ET), in the recipient's local time zone, typically gets through faster.
Confirm the fax number. Different IRS forms go to different fax numbers. The number on the form's instructions takes precedence over any number you find online. Always include the country code: +1 for US numbers.
Keep faxes short. Break up large submissions into 5-10 page batches. Smaller faxes are more likely to complete successfully on a busy line.
Enable auto-retry. With auto-retry on, the system will re-attempt failed transmissions at intelligent intervals. See How can I configure my account to initiate automatic fax resend attempts in case of a fax failure?. This is especially useful during tax season.
Don't send and re-send manually in quick succession. Each attempt may consume credits if the IRS line picks up briefly before disconnecting. Wait at least 15 minutes between manual retry attempts.
Why faxes to government agencies fail
Common causes:
- Recipient line is busy. Try again in 15-30 minutes.
- Recipient's machine didn't respond. The line picked up but no fax handshake. Retry in 30-60 minutes.
- Connection dropped mid-transmission. Often due to high traffic on the agency's side. See How Auto Resume on Partial Send works.
- You're sending from an international number to a US agency. Switch to a US Fax.Plus number.
Important note on credits and failed faxes
When a fax to a government agency fails, credits may still be deducted based on the connection duration with the telecom operator. This is industry-standard for fax services. See Why was credit deducted even though my fax didn't send? for the full explanation. We deeply recommend enabling auto-retry rather than manually re-attempting, to minimize this cost.
Receiving from the IRS
If you need to receive faxes from the IRS, see Using Fax.Plus to receive faxes from the IRS.
Find your senator's fax number
For faxing US senators or members of Congress, see How can I access the full list of senators' fax numbers?.