The periods and how they are counted
Levy notices (IRC 6330). The request for a collection due process hearing must be made in writing “within the 30-day period commencing the day after the date of the CDP Notice issued under section 6330” (Treas. Reg. 301.6330-1(c)(2), A-C3). The date that counts is the date printed on the notice the taxpayer received, not the date the representative's copy arrived; IRM 8.22.5.3.1 calls the taxpayer's notice the controlling notice.
Lien notices (IRC 6320). The IRS must notify the taxpayer within five business days after it files the notice of federal tax lien, and the 30-day period for a CDP request begins the day after that five-business-day period ends (Treas. Reg. 301.6320-1(c)(2), A-C3). The lien is treated as filed when the recording office receives it (IRM 8.22.5.3.1.2). Letter 3172 shows the resulting "must file by" date.
Equivalent hearings. A taxpayer who misses the 30-day deadline can ask for an equivalent hearing within the one-year period that begins the day after the levy notice date, or the day after the five-business-day period for a lien (Treas. Reg. 301.6330-1(i)(2) and 301.6320-1(i)(2), A-I7). There is no extension for living abroad (A-I9). IRM 8.22.5.3.1.2 notes that “Late-filed CDP hearing requests are not automatically classified as EH requests”: the taxpayer has to check the equivalent hearing box on Form 12153, say so in writing, or confirm it when Collection asks.
Weekends, holidays and mailing. The regulations apply IRC 7502 and 7503 to both kinds of request (A-C4 and A-I8): a request postmarked by the last day is timely, and a last day on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday moves to the next business day. The calculator uses the District of Columbia legal holidays the IRM lists, including April 16 Emancipation Day. The same rules are applied to the 30-day Tax Court petition period after a notice of determination (IRC 6330(d)(1)).
Why the difference matters
A timely CDP request suspends levy for the periods in the notice and suspends the collection statute while the hearing and any appeal are pending, and the determination can be taken to the Tax Court. An equivalent hearing gets the same Appeals review but no Tax Court review of the decision (A-I6), and “The collection statute is not extended for equivalency hearings” (IRM 5.1.19.3.3). IRM 8.22.5.3.2 recognizes that both the 30-day and one-year deadlines are subject to equitable tolling, but only where the taxpayer shows diligence and extraordinary circumstances beyond their control; barely missing a deadline is not enough. See CDP hearings, equivalent hearings and the hearing request attachment.
Checked against the regulations' examples
Treas. Reg. 301.6330-1(c)(3) works a levy example: a CDP notice mailed June 24, 1999 gives a 30-day period beginning June 25 and ending Saturday, July 24, so a request is timely through Monday, July 26, 1999. Treas. Reg. 301.6320-1(c)(3) works a lien example: a lien filed June 17, 1999, a five-business-day period ending June 24, a 30-day period beginning June 25, and the same July 26 answer. The calculator returns July 26, 1999 for both. The notices themselves are covered in LT11 and Letter 1058, CP90 and Letter 3172.
Questions practitioners ask
Is the deadline 30 days from the date I received the notice?
No. For a levy notice the 30-day period begins the day after the date on the notice. For a lien notice it begins the day after the end of the five-business-day period following the lien filing. Receipt date does not change either one.
Does mailing on the last day count?
Yes. Treas. Regs. 301.6330-1 and 301.6320-1 apply IRC 7502, so a properly addressed request postmarked by the last day is timely, and IRM 8.22.5.3.1 also accepts a timely fax to the number on the notice.
What if both a lien notice and a levy notice cover the same periods?
Each notice starts its own periods. Count each one separately; a hearing request can address both.
Can an equivalent hearing decision be appealed to the Tax Court?
Generally no. Section 6330 does not authorize Tax Court review of an equivalent hearing decision (A-I6), except in limited situations such as a denial of innocent spouse relief, which can be reviewed under IRC 6015(e) within 90 days.