The short answer
- Until November 19, 2026, 3 p.m. Eastern, FIRE still takes information returns, so a correction you already know about can still go through FIRE.
- After January 1, 2027, "IRIS will be the only information returns electronic filing system, including current year, prior year, or corrections" (irs.gov/fire, updated October 30, 2026).
- The IRS has said IRIS will take corrections to FIRE originals, but the step-by-step instructions for the portal aren't published yet (details below).
What the IRS has said
In its IRIS working group slides of March and April 2026, the IRS said it was "currently working on a process for filing correction through IRIS for original files submitted through FIRE". The October 14, 2026 slides answer the question "How will I correct forms submitted in FIRE once FIRE goes away?":
- "When submitting a correction for an original return filed through FIRE, transmitters must identify FIRE as the original intake system using the applicable XML data element for A2A files."
- "The Taxpayer Portal will also allow for prior FIRE original corrections."
Source: IRIS Working Group Meeting, October 14, 2026 (IRS slides). In short: software that files to IRIS (A2A) flags the correction as one to a FIRE original, and the free IRIS Taxpayer Portal is meant to handle them too.
What isn't published yet
The IRIS Taxpayer Portal User Guide (Publication 5717, Rev. 9-2026) describes corrections only for forms filed through the portal: Dashboard, View Submitted Forms, tick the transmission, Correct/Replace. A return filed through FIRE won't be in that list, and the guide doesn't yet say how the portal will find or correct one, or from what date. Until the IRS publishes that, plan for it to work but don't rely on the exact screens.
Prior tax years
Publication 5717 says: "The earliest year IRIS will intake forms is for tax year 2022." In the portal you choose the current tax year or one of the four before it. So corrections and late filings for tax years 2022 and later have a home in IRIS. For tax years before 2022, none of the IRS sources above says how to file or correct them electronically once FIRE closes. If that's you, ask the IRS before November 19, while FIRE is still open.
The kinds of correction
In IRIS, Publication 5717 separates two kinds:
- One-step corrections: a wrong recipient name or TIN, wrong amounts, a wrong code or indicator, or a form that shouldn't have been filed for a recipient (correct it with zero for every amount).
- Two-step corrections: the wrong form type, such as a 1099-MISC filed instead of a 1099-NEC. Zero out every amount on the wrong form, then file an original on the right form.
A wrong payer name or TIN can't be corrected in IRIS: Publication 5717 says the payer writes a letter to the IRS instead.
What to do now
- Fix known errors in FIRE before November 19, 2026, 3 p.m. Eastern. After that, FIRE takes nothing, corrections included.
- Keep your FIRE files and acknowledgements. A later correction will likely need the original's details: the payer and recipient TINs, the form type, the tax year and the amounts filed.
- Get an IRIS TCC. A FIRE TCC can't be used in the IRIS Taxpayer Portal (Publication 5717), and the application can take up to 45 days (the October 14, 2026 slides). Steps: filing 1099s through IRIS.
- Watch for the IRS instructions at irs.gov/fire and in the IRIS working group slides. I'll update this page when they're out.
Finding the record to correct
A Publication 1220 file is hard to read by eye. The free Publication 1220 file checker opens an old FIRE file in your browser and shows each payer's forms with the recipients (TINs masked) and amounts, checked against the file's own totals, so you can see what was filed. Nothing is uploaded. Corrections themselves are entered in IRIS: my FIRE to IRIS converter makes CSV files for original filings, not corrections.