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Dealing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) can be so confusing that you might be tempted to just pick up the phone and call them for help. But while the agency does have a variety of numbers you can call, your chance of actually getting someone on the phone is so low it's generally not worth the effort. According to the IRS Taxpayer Advocate, only 11 percent of the 282 million calls made to the agency in 2021 reached a customer service agent at all. But you may have to prepare yourself for being on hold for a while. In a new warning, the IRS just said that taxpayers who don't have one thing should contact the agency immediately. Read on to find out if you need to give them a call.

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The IRS posted a new alert on March 30, warning some taxpayers that they might need to contact the agency immediately in regards to a missing payment. "Individuals are encouraged to double-check their bank accounts–especially in early spring and summer of 2021–to see whether they received a third-round payment in advance last year," the IRS advised.

If you did not receive your third payment but your online IRS account shows a payment amount larger than zero or you received a notice indicating that a payment was issued to you, you will need to reach out to the agency. "They should contact the IRS as soon as possible to see if a payment trace is needed," the agency warned.

You can either call the IRS or mail/fax a completed Form 3811 to the agency to request a payment trace. "You will generally receive a response 6 weeks after we receive your request for a payment trace, but there may be delays due to limited staffing," the agency said.

The IRS issued more than 175 million checks for the third round of Economic Impact Payments (EIP) through Dec. 31, 2021. According to the agency, these payments totaled more than $400 billion sent to individuals and families across the U.S. "Most of the third-round payments were issued in the spring and early summer of 2021," the agency said. "The IRS continued to send plus-up payments through December if, after their 2020 tax return was processed last year, the taxpayer was eligible for additional amounts."AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB.

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The IRS said that it is no longer issuing any of the three stimulus payments, "as required by law." But if you're missing a payment or got less than the amount you were eligible for, you may still be able to get the money you're owed. To do so, taxpayers must claim a Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2020 or 2021 federal tax return, according to the agency.

The agency has mailed notices, referred to as Letter 6475, to help people accurately claim any remaining payments from the third stimulus on their 2021 return. However, "most eligible people already received the full amount of their credit in advance and don't need to include any information about this payment when they file their 2021 tax return," the IRS said.

You should not contact the IRS just to determine if you were eligible for a payment or to confirm how much you should have received, however. Instead, you have two ways to check this: through your online IRS account or by letters the agency recently sent. According to the IRS, taxpayers have been able to view the total amount that was issued to them for their third stimulus payment online since Jan. 15.

And on March 30, the IRS said it just finished mailing Letters 6475 to recipients of the third-round of EIPs. Iniletter provides taxpayers with the total amount they were issued for the third payments, as well as any plus-up payments they received.

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