The IRS collected $73.1 billion in fiscal year 2025 on tax bills that had gone unpaid, down from $77.6 billion in 2024. At the end of FY2025 it had 13,112,485 delinquent accounts open, owing $211.5 billion in tax, penalties and interest.
Enforcement rose. The IRS filed 214,099 notices of federal tax lien, up 9%, and requested 339,137 levies on banks, employers and other third parties, up 8%. It seized property 50 times, down from 71.
More people paid over time. 4,870,810 taxpayers were in installment agreements at the end of FY2025, and $17.9 billion was collected on those agreements during the year. The IRS received 38,797 offers in compromise, which are requests to settle for less than the full amount owed, and accepted 5,464, down from 7,199.
What the figures measure
The IRS fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30, so FY2025 ended September 30, 2025. The table covers all return types, so it includes businesses as well as individuals.
- Gross yield is money collected on previously assessed unpaid tax, plus penalties and interest. The IRS subtracts credits moved from one of a taxpayer’s tax records to another to get the net amount collected.
- Delinquent account balance includes assessed penalties and interest but not interest and penalties that have built up since the assessment, so the amount people actually owe is higher.
- Liens are public notices of the government’s claim on a taxpayer’s property. Levies take money held by someone else, such as a bank account or wages. Seizures take property directly.
- Delinquency investigations open when a taxpayer does not respond to a notice about an unfiled return. The ending inventory rose from 2,050,877 to 3,234,815.
- Installment agreement counts are taxpayers, not individual tax years. Penalties and interest keep accruing until the balance is paid.
All measures
| Category | Measure | FY2024 | FY2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Activity | 2,024 | 2,025 | +0.0% | |
| Returns filed with additional tax due | Gross total yield from unpaid assessments | $120.24 billion | $117.53 billion | -2.3% |
| Returns filed with additional tax due | Less: Credit transfers | $42.69 billion | $44.38 billion | +4.0% |
| Returns filed with additional tax due | Equals: Net total amount collected | $77.55 billion | $73.14 billion | -5.7% |
| Taxpayer delinquent accounts | Number in beginning inventory | 11,375,720 | 14,901,508 | +31.0% |
| Taxpayer delinquent accounts | Number of new accounts | 9,630,933 | 7,899,744 | -18.0% |
| Taxpayer delinquent accounts | Number of accounts closed | 6,105,145 | 9,688,767 | +58.7% |
| Taxpayer delinquent accounts, end of year | Number | 14,901,508 | 13,112,485 | -12.0% |
| Taxpayer delinquent accounts, end of year | Balance of assessed tax, penalties, and interest | $208.41 billion | $211.53 billion | +1.5% |
| Returns not filed on time | Net amount assessed | $17.84 billion | $29.61 billion | +65.9% |
| Returns not filed on time | Amount collected with delinquent returns | $3.22 billion | $3.48 billion | +8.2% |
| Taxpayer delinquency investigations | Number in beginning inventory | 2,012,759 | 2,050,877 | +1.9% |
| Taxpayer delinquency investigations | Number of new investigations | 639,143 | 2,501,667 | +291.4% |
| Taxpayer delinquency investigations | Number of investigations closed | 601,025 | 1,317,729 | +119.2% |
| Taxpayer delinquency investigations | Number in ending inventory | 2,050,877 | 3,234,815 | +57.7% |
| Offers in compromise | Number of offers received | 33,591 | 38,797 | +15.5% |
| Offers in compromise | Number of offers accepted | 7,199 | 5,464 | -24.1% |
| Offers in compromise | Amount of offers accepted | $163.4 million | $98.1 million | -39.9% |
| Enforcement activity | Number of notices of federal tax liens filed | 196,996 | 214,099 | +8.7% |
| Enforcement activity | Number of notices of levy requested on third parties | 313,792 | 339,137 | +8.1% |
| Enforcement activity | Number of seizures | 71 | 50 | -29.6% |
| Installment agreements | Number in beginning inventory | 4,038,081 | 4,642,420 | +15.0% |
| Installment agreements | Number of new agreements established | 3,403,214 | 3,160,047 | -7.1% |
| Installment agreements | Number of taxpayers that were full paid | 1,902,125 | 1,963,093 | +3.2% |
| Installment agreements | Number in ending inventory | 4,642,420 | 4,870,810 | +4.9% |
| Installment agreements | Amount collected for cases in installment agreement status | $16.11 billion | $17.88 billion | +11.0% |
Dollar amounts are rounded from the IRS figures, which are in thousands of dollars; the CSV keeps the original values. Change is our calculation.
Source
Internal Revenue Service, IRS Data Book, Table 4-1, Delinquent Collection Activities, Fiscal Years 2024 and 2025, downloaded October 25, 2026. U.S. government data in the public domain. Our table is available under CC BY 4.0. Credit "My Credit Guide (mycreditguide.org)".
Steven Reynolds, "IRS Collections of Unpaid Tax, 2024 and 2025," My Credit Guide, October 25, 2026, https://mycreditguide.org/data/irs-collections/.