Form 8822 tells the IRS that your home mailing address changed, but the envelope only works if it reaches the right campus. Which address to use depends on two questions in a fixed order: whether you checked the box on line 2 for gift, estate, or generation-skipping transfer tax returns, and, if you did not, which IRS campus covers the state on your old home mailing address. This article walks through that decision path with the addresses printed on the current form, checked against the February 2021 revision on 2026-10-18.
Who should file Form 8822
Use Form 8822 (Rev. February 2021) if you changed your home mailing address and want the IRS to update its records for you. On the form, line 1 covers individual income tax returns such as Form 1040, and line 2 covers gift, estate, and generation-skipping transfer tax returns such as Forms 706 and 709. If the change also affects the mailing address for your children who filed income tax returns, the form's instructions require a separate Form 8822 for each child.
Plan for the wait: the Form 8822 instructions and the IRS address-change FAQ both say it generally takes 4 to 6 weeks to process a change of address, while Topic 157 currently states about 45 days. Neither source promises when a specific piece of forwarded mail will arrive, so allow several weeks before you expect IRS correspondence at the new address.
First fork: did you check the box on line 2?
Before you look at any state table, look at the boxes on the form. If you checked the box on line 2 (gift, estate, or generation-skipping transfer tax returns), the Where To File section sends the form to a single designated center regardless of your state:
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service Center, Kansas City, MO 64999-0023
If you are filing for Forms 706 or 706-NA, you also enter the decedent's name and social security number on line 2, and the same Kansas City address applies.
If you did not check line 2, move to the state table below.
The main decision path: your OLD home mailing address decides the campus
When line 2 is unchecked, the campus is chosen by your old home mailing address, not your new one. Here is the table as printed in the Where To File section of the current form, with the full destinations:
| If your old home mailing address was in... | Then mail Form 8822 to... |
|---|---|
| Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin | Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Kansas City, MO 64999-0023 |
| Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas | Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0023 |
| Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming | Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Ogden, UT 84201-0023 |
| A foreign country, American Samoa, or Puerto Rico (or you are excluding income under Internal Revenue Code section 933), or you use an APO or FPO address, or file Form 2555, 2555-EZ, or 4563, or are a dual-status alien or non bona fide resident of Guam or the Virgin Islands | Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0023 |
| Guam (bona fide residents) | Department of Revenue and Taxation, Government of Guam, P.O. Box 23607, GMF, GU 96921 |
| Virgin Islands (bona fide residents) | V.I. Bureau of Internal Revenue, 6115 Estate Smith Bay, Suite 225, St. Thomas, VI 00802 |
Verified against the current Form 8822 PDF (Rev. February 2021) on 2026-10-18. Campus addresses occasionally move, so confirm the row against the PDF you actually mail.
A few filling rules from the same instructions affect delivery as much as the campus choice:
- Include any apartment, room, or suite number in the address spaces.
- Enter a P.O. box instead of a street address only if your post office does not deliver to your street address.
- If your mail goes through a third party such as an accountant or attorney, enter "C/O" followed by that party's name and address.
- For a foreign address, follow the country's practice for the postal code and do not abbreviate the country name.
- Do not attach Form 8822 to your tax return; it is mailed on its own.
- If your last return was a joint return, your spouse must also sign, unless you checked the separate-residence box on line 1 because you are now establishing a residence apart from that spouse.
Is it a business address? Use Form 8822-B instead
Form 8822 changes a home mailing address. If the address you are changing belongs to a business, use Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party - Business (Rev. December 2019). It covers business mailing addresses, business locations, and the identity of a business's responsible party, and entities with an EIN must use it to report a responsible-party change within 60 days. Its Where To File table groups states differently from Form 8822 (Kansas City or Ogden for business filers, with no Austin campus), so never copy the home-address table above onto a business filing. For employment tax returns, the IRS also issues confirmation notices (Notices 148A and 148B) to both the old and new address.
If you moved your home and your business at the same time, the instructions direct you to file both forms: Form 8822 for the home change and Form 8822-B for the business change.
Do not want to mail it? The other ways to notify the IRS
Mailing Form 8822 is one option, not the only one. The IRS address-change FAQ lists these methods for individuals:
- New address on your return. If you change your address before filing, enter the new address on the return and the IRS updates its records when the return is processed. Topic 157 adds that you should also notify your return preparer.
- A signed written statement. Send the IRS a signed statement with your full name, your old and new addresses, and your SSN, ITIN, or EIN, mailed to the address where you filed your last return.
- Oral notification, by phone or in person. Tell the IRS by telephone or at an office visit. You must verify your identity and the address on file, so have your full name, old and new addresses, and SSN, ITIN, or EIN ready; the IRS may request additional information to complete the verification.
Two conditions apply to all of these routes. If you filed a joint return and still live with your spouse, both of you provide your names, SSNs, the new address, and signatures; if you now have separate addresses, each spouse notifies the IRS separately. And if an authorized representative files the form or statement for you, they must attach a power of attorney or Form 2848, because the IRS will not process an address change from an unauthorized third party. The address-change FAQ does not list an online submission route for Form 8822 itself; its enumerated methods are the ones above.
Common mistakes
- Picking the campus from your new state. The table keys off your old home mailing address. A fictional example: you moved from Columbus, Ohio to Austin, Texas. Texas sits in the Austin group, but your old address was in Ohio, which belongs to the Ogden group, so the envelope goes to Ogden, UT 84201-0023.
- Mailing a business change on Form 8822. A new office, store, or business mailing address belongs on Form 8822-B, whose own state table and destinations differ.
- Skipping a separate 8822 for a child who also files. If your move affects the mailing address of a child who filed income tax returns, that child needs a separate Form 8822; one parent's form does not cover it.
Fill and export Form 8822 with Fylune
If you are preparing the paper form, Fylune's Form 8822 tool walks you through the fields on the current PDF, including the line 1 and line 2 checkboxes, the old and new address spaces, and the signature block, and exports a print-ready copy for your envelope. Fylune works on your local files and is not affiliated with the IRS; preparing or exporting the PDF does not submit it or notify the IRS, so the mailing step in this article is still yours to complete.
FAQ
Can I file Form 8822 online? The address-change FAQ does not list an online route for Form 8822. The methods it covers are the paper form, a new address on your next filed return, a signed written statement, and oral notification by phone or in person with identity verification.
How long until my mail reaches the new address? The Form 8822 instructions and the FAQ both say processing generally takes 4 to 6 weeks after receipt, and Topic 157 states about 45 days. Those are processing estimates for the address change itself; neither source guarantees when any particular piece of forwarded mail arrives.
Do I need to notify the USPS separately? Yes, and it does not replace the IRS step. A USPS change of address may update your address of record with the IRS through the National Change of Address database, but the IRS warns that not all post offices forward government checks, so you should still notify the IRS directly.
Ready to prepare the form? Open Fylune's Form 8822 tool, fill it against the current February 2021 PDF, and export the print-ready copy for the campus your old address points to.
Sources
- Form 8822, Change of Address (Rev. February 2021): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8822.pdf
- About Form 8822, IRS (no recent developments listed at check on 2026-10-18): https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-8822
- IRS FAQ, Address changes: https://www.irs.gov/faqs/irs-procedures/address-changes
- Topic no. 157, Change your address - How to notify the IRS: https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc157
- Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible Party - Business (Rev. December 2019): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8822b.pdf
This article gives general form-filing guidance for the current public form and is not individual tax advice. Addresses reflect the February 2021 revision of Form 8822 as checked on 2026-10-18; always confirm against the current PDF before mailing.