Form 8691 - Memorandum Refund Pursuant To: Settlement/Government Concession

Q: Does IRC §6402 apply to a Form 8691 refund?

Yes. Under section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, any overpayment may first be credited against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer before the balance is paid.

Q: Is a Settlement the same as a Government Concession on Form 8691?

No. The Subject line on Form 8691 has two distinct checkboxes – Settlement and Government Concession – and the preparer must indicate which legal basis applies. The two terms are not interchangeable.

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In Brief

IRS Form 8691 is the Memorandum Refund Pursuant To: Settlement/Government Concession – an internal IRS memorandum (Rev. 6-2022, Catalog No. 64554T) used by IRS counsel to authorize a refund or credit of tax, interest, or penalties after the Department of Justice has authorized the refund pursuant to a settlement or government concession. Taxpayers do not file Form 8691; the IRS prepares it. The refund check or notice of credit is sent to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044, and any overpayment may be offset under IRC §6402 against other federal tax liability of the same taxpayer before the balance is paid.

If you are looking for Form 8691 to claim a refund yourself, you will not find an entry point. Taxpayers do not file it. It is an internal IRS memorandum that IRS counsel prepares to authorize a refund or credit of tax, interest, or penalties, and only after the Department of Justice has authorized that refund pursuant to a settlement or government concession.

The form, current at Rev. 6-2022, has a Subject line with two checkboxes, Settlement and Government Concession, and the preparer picks the legal basis. The refund check or notice of credit goes to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, not to the taxpayer. Under IRC §6402, any overpayment may first be credited against the taxpayer's other liabilities before the balance is paid.

Key Takeaways

IRS Form 8691 is the Memorandum Refund Pursuant To: Settlement/Government Concession. The current revision is June 2022 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, hosted at www.irs.gov.
Form 8691 is an internal IRS administrative memorandum. Taxpayers do not file it; IRS counsel prepares it.
The form may only be issued after the Department of Justice has authorized the refund or credit pursuant to a settlement or government concession.
The Subject line has two distinct checkboxes – Settlement and Government Concession – and the preparer must select the legal basis.
The refund check or notice of credit is sent to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044 – not to the taxpayer.
Under IRC §6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, any overpayment may first be credited against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer before the balance is paid.
Three enclosures accompany the form: Transcript of Account, Recomputation (1 copy), and DJ letter (1 copy).

What Form 8691 Is, and Why It Matters

IRS Form 8691, Memorandum Refund Pursuant To: Settlement/Government Concession, is an internal IRS administrative memorandum prepared by IRS counsel to authorize the payment of a refund or credit of tax, interest, or penalties after the Department of Justice has authorized the refund pursuant to a settlement or government concession in the taxpayer's litigation.

Tip, always source the form from www.irs.gov. The current revision (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, is the version in use during the 2025 tax year and applies to refunds pursuant to settlements or government concessions for any underlying tax year.

Current revision and authority

The current revision of Form 8691 is dated June 2022 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, issued by the Department of the Treasury – Internal Revenue Service.
The statutory offset authority cited on the form is section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, under which any overpayment may be credited against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer.

When Form 8691 Is Used

Form 8691 is used only after the Department of Justice has authorized a refund or credit pursuant to a settlement or government concession in the taxpayer's litigation. It is not a taxpayer-completed form; IRS counsel prepares it as an internal memorandum from one IRS office to another to recommend payment of the amounts shown on the recomputation as refundable.

Settlement vs. Government Concession

The Subject line on Form 8691 carries two distinct checkboxes – Settlement and Government Concession – and the preparer must indicate which legal basis the refund is being paid under. The two are not interchangeable, and the correct box must be selected based on the DOJ authorization.

What the Form Authorizes for Payment

Form 8691 only authorizes payment of the amounts of tax, interest, or penalties that the recomputation shows as refundable pursuant to the specific terms of the settlement or government concession. Anything outside the recomputation is not authorized.

The form expressly references IRC §6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Under §6402, any overpayment may first be credited against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer before the balance is paid out. Only the net amount is paid as a refund.

The Fast Way to Get the Right PDF

Go to the official IRS "About Form 8691" page at www.irs.gov and download the current single-page PDF.
Confirm the issuing footer reads "Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022) Catalog Number 64554T www.irs.gov Department of the Treasury - Internal Revenue Service."

One-minute precheck before you issue

Confirm the form revision footer reads "Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022)" and Catalog Number "64554T."
If your saved copy shows a different revision, discard it and re-download from www.irs.gov.

How IRS Counsel Prepares the Memorandum

Form 8691 is prepared internally by IRS counsel; taxpayers do not file this form. The preparer completes the memorandum after the Department of Justice has authorized the underlying refund or credit.

Source the current PDF Download Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, from www.irs.gov.
Complete the top fields Enter the Date, To, and Form fields at the top of the memorandum.
Select the Subject line basis Check either Settlement or Government Concession on the Subject line to match the DOJ authorization. The two are distinct checkboxes and are not interchangeable.
Confirm DOJ authorization Verify that the Department of Justice has authorized the underlying refund or credit (the DJ letter) before issuing the memorandum.
Cap the recommended payment Recommend payment only of the amounts of tax, interest, or penalties that the recomputation shows as refundable pursuant to the settlement's terms.
Include the notice-of-adjustment statement The notice of adjustment must contain the specific statement set out on the form itself in the space provided.
Attach the enclosures Check the boxes for Transcript of Account, Recomputation (1 copy, dated), and DJ letter (1 copy, dated).

Where to Send the Refund Check or Notice of Credit

The remittance address printed on Form 8691 routes the check or notice of credit to the DOJ Tax Division, not to the taxpayer:

Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.

DOJ handles disbursement consistent with the settlement after receipt.

After issuance

The issuing office must advise the originating IRS office that the check or notice of credit has been issued.

Refund Scope and §6402 Offset Explained

Form 8691 is a procedural memorandum, not a substantive refund calculation. The refund is bounded by two things: what the recomputation identifies as refundable under the settlement, and the IRS's §6402 offset authority.

Refund scope: only tax, interest, or penalties shown on the recomputation as refundable pursuant to the specific settlement terms.
Offset authority: under IRC §6402, any overpayment may be credited against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer.
Payee on the check: the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice – not the taxpayer.
Notice of adjustment: must contain the specific statement set out on the form itself.

The applicable statutory authority is section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, not Title 38 CFR (which governs VA programs and does not apply to Form 8691).

Quick reference table

Item	What to know
Form number / title	Form 8691 – Memorandum Refund Pursuant To: Settlement/Government Concession
Current revision	June 2022 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T
Issuing agency	Department of the Treasury – Internal Revenue Service
Prepared by	IRS counsel (internal memorandum); not a taxpayer-filed form
Trigger	DOJ has authorized a refund or credit pursuant to a Settlement or Government Concession
Subject options	Settlement or Government Concession (two checkboxes)
Refund scope	Tax, interest, or penalties shown on the recomputation as refundable under the settlement
Statutory offset	IRC §6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
Remittance address	Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, DOJ, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044
Enclosures	Transcript of Account; Recomputation (1 copy); DJ letter (1 copy)

Smart Issuance Tips that Prevent Delays

Use the current revision, Confirm the form footer reads "Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022)" and Catalog No. 64554T, sourced from www.irs.gov.
Verify DOJ authorization first, The DJ letter must be on file before the memorandum is prepared; attach the dated DJ letter (1 copy) as an enclosure.
Match the Subject line to the authorization, Settlement and Government Concession are distinct checkboxes; pick the one that matches the DOJ authorization.
Cap recommended amounts at the recomputation, Tax, interest, or penalties only to the extent the recomputation shows them as refundable under the settlement's terms.

Helpful References

About Form 8691 on www.irs.gov, download the current PDF (Rev. 6-2022, Catalog No. 64554T).
Internal Revenue Code §6402, the statutory offset authority cited on the form itself.
DOJ Tax Division remittance address, Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.
Form enclosure list, Transcript of Account, Recomputation (1 copy), and DJ letter (1 copy).
Subject line options, Settlement or Government Concession (two checkboxes).

Quick-Start Checklist

Download Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, from www.irs.gov.
Confirm DOJ has authorized the refund or credit (the DJ letter on file).
Check Settlement or Government Concession on the Subject line to match the DOJ authorization.
Cap the recommended payment at the amounts shown on the recomputation as refundable.
Address the refund check or notice of credit to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.
Apply the IRC §6402 offset against any other federal tax liability of the same taxpayer before paying the balance.

A Note on Process Discipline

As a team that places trained offshore staff and structures regulated work, we care a lot about version control, documentation, and clear handoffs. The same habits help here. Source the current revision (Rev. 6-2022, Catalog No. 64554T) from www.irs.gov, confirm DOJ has authorized the refund or credit, match the Subject line checkbox to the authorization, cap the recommended amounts at the recomputation, and route remittance to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division. Pre-issuance checklists turn high-volume procedural memoranda into predictable production.

Closing

That is the procedural shape of Form 8691: a single-page internal IRS memorandum, prepared by IRS counsel after DOJ authorization, with a Subject line check for Settlement or Government Concession, three enclosures (Transcript of Account, Recomputation, DJ letter), the IRC §6402 offset rule on the face of the form, and a remittance line that routes the check or notice of credit to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044. Keep the current revision (Rev. 6-2022, Catalog No. 64554T) sourced from www.irs.gov, and apply the §6402 offset before computing the net balance.

Common Mistakes We See Every Season

Most Form 8691 work stalls for the same handful of reasons, and they are all preventable with a clean pre-issuance review. The pattern repeats: stale form revisions, mismatched Subject checkboxes, missing enclosures, and remittance lines addressed to the wrong recipient.

1. Treating Form 8691 as a VA form. Form 8691 is sometimes incorrectly described as "VA Form 22-8691" or associated with the Department of Veterans Affairs. It is an IRS form issued by the Department of the Treasury – Internal Revenue Service (Catalog No. 64554T, Rev. 6-2022), with no relationship to the VA or any veterans' program. Fix: Use the current revision of IRS Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022) sourced from www.irs.gov; the Memorandum Refund form is an internal IRS administrative memorandum, not a VA form.

2. Sending the refund check to the taxpayer instead of DOJ. Form 8691 expressly directs the refund check or notice of credit to the Department of Justice, not to the taxpayer. Routing payment to the taxpayer directly is a common misstep when the underlying litigation has not been kept top of mind. Fix: Address the refund check or notice of credit to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.

3. Issuing Form 8691 before DOJ has authorized the refund. Form 8691 may only be issued after the Department of Justice has authorized the underlying refund or credit pursuant to a settlement or government concession. Issuing it earlier inverts the procedural sequence the form is built around. Fix: Confirm DOJ authorization in writing (the DJ letter) before preparing the memorandum, and attach the dated DJ letter (1 copy) as one of the form's enclosures.

4. Ignoring the §6402 offset rule. Settlement refunds processed through Form 8691 are sometimes described as if the IRS will always pay the full amount directly to the taxpayer. In fact, IRC §6402 permits the IRS to first credit any overpayment against any other tax liability of the same taxpayer. Fix: Account for §6402 offset against any outstanding federal tax liability of the same taxpayer; only the net amount is paid out.

5. Conflating Settlement and Government Concession. The Subject line on Form 8691 has two distinct checkboxes – Settlement and Government Concession – and the preparer must indicate which legal basis the refund is being paid under. Treating the two as interchangeable misstates the basis on the face of the memorandum. Fix: Confirm whether DOJ authorized the refund as a Settlement or as a Government Concession, then check the matching box on the Subject line of Form 8691.

6. Overstating the refund scope. It is sometimes claimed that any litigation settlement results in a full refund of tax plus statutory interest and abatement of all penalties. Form 8691 only authorizes the amounts the recomputation actually shows as refundable under the specific settlement terms. Fix: Cap the recommended payment at the tax, interest, or penalty amounts shown on the recomputation as refundable pursuant to the settlement's terms; do not extend beyond what the recomputation supports.

Reusable Checklists

These checklists are copy-paste ready for an IRS counsel team's pre-issuance SOP. Each item maps to a specific failure mode that delays a Form 8691 refund or credit.

Pre-issuance review

Use the current IRS Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, from www.irs.gov.
Confirm DOJ has authorized the refund or credit pursuant to a settlement or government concession.
Verify the Subject line checkbox matches the DOJ authorization: Settlement or Government Concession.
Confirm the recomputation supports the tax, interest, or penalty amounts being recommended.
Attach the dated DJ letter (1 copy) as one of the form's enclosures.
Attach the dated Recomputation (1 copy) and the Transcript of Account; check each enclosure box.
Include the notice-of-adjustment statement in the space provided on the form.

DOJ remittance scan

Address the refund check or notice of credit to: Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice.
Mailing location: Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.
Do not send the refund check or notice of credit directly to the taxpayer.
Use trackable mail and retain proof of delivery for the case file.
After issuance, advise the originating IRS office that the payment or credit has been made.

§6402 offset check

Identify the total overpayment recommended for payment on Form 8691.
Identify any other federal tax liability of the same taxpayer.
Under IRC §6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, credit the overpayment against that other liability first.
Document the net balance to be paid as a refund.
Ensure the notice of adjustment carries the specific statement set out on the form.

Keep 8691 Season From Stalling

Form 8691 work tends to bunch up after DOJ settlements clear in waves. The most common delays are procedural: mismatched Subject checkboxes, missing enclosures, and remittance lines addressed to the wrong recipient.

The fix is the discipline any back office applies to high-volume procedural work: standardize the inputs, lock the review steps, and remove the guesswork before the memorandum leaves the desk.

Keep a single live link to the current IRS Form 8691 (Rev. 6-2022) at www.irs.gov on your intake page so no one issues a stale version.
Pre-populate the remittance line to: Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044.
Run a two-minute pre-issuance review for DOJ authorization on file, the correct Subject checkbox (Settlement or Government Concession), and complete enclosures (Transcript of Account, Recomputation 1 copy, DJ letter 1 copy).
Apply the IRC §6402 offset before computing the net refund balance.
After issuance, notify the originating IRS office that the payment or credit has been made.

Accountably builds the same kind of structured back-office discipline for finance and tax operations, with documented SOPs, multi-layer review, and turnaround SLAs that turn high-volume paper workflows into predictable production. See our tax services for how that structure carries across to year-round compliance work.

FAQs

Can a taxpayer file Form 8691?

No. Form 8691 is an internal IRS administrative memorandum prepared by IRS counsel after the Department of Justice has authorized a refund or credit pursuant to a settlement or government concession. Taxpayers do not complete or file Form 8691.

Where is the refund check or notice of credit sent?

Form 8691 directs the IRS to send the refund check or notice of credit to the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, Department of Justice, Ben Franklin Station, P.O. Box 813, Washington, DC 20044, not to the taxpayer.

What does Form 8691 authorize for payment?

Form 8691 recommends payment only of the tax, interest, or penalties shown on the recomputation as refundable pursuant to the specific settlement or government concession. Any overpayment may first be offset against other federal tax liability of the same taxpayer under IRC §6402, and only the net balance is paid out.

Is a Settlement the same as a Government Concession on Form 8691?

No. The Subject line on Form 8691 carries two distinct checkboxes – Settlement and Government Concession – and the preparer must indicate which legal basis applies. The two terms are not interchangeable.

What is the current revision of Form 8691?

The current revision is dated June 2022 (Rev. 6-2022), Catalog No. 64554T, hosted at www.irs.gov. The form is not tax-year-specific and applies to refunds pursuant to settlements or government concessions for any underlying tax year.

What enclosures accompany Form 8691?

Three enclosures are listed on the form: the Transcript of Account, the Recomputation (1 copy, dated), and the DJ letter (1 copy, dated). Each enclosure has its own checkbox.

Does OBBBA or the 2025 tax year affect Form 8691?

No. Form 8691 is a procedural memorandum for routing refunds DOJ has authorized in litigation; it does not embed substantive tax-rate or deduction figures. OBBBA (July 2025) does not change the form, its enclosures, or the IRC §6402 offset authority it cites for tax year 2025.