{
  "id": "BRD-261",
  "slug": "brd-261",
  "title": "Only federal tax documentation counts in an appeal",
  "statement": "Appeals must rely on federal-level tax documentation; state-level documents are not accepted.",
  "rationale": "Verification runs against federal records, so a state filing — however official — does not corroborate the thing being checked and the appeal fails with the document attached. State certificates are the ones businesses have to hand, which is why they are the ones that get sent.",
  "layer": "BRAND",
  "layerSlug": "brand",
  "object": "the appeal attachments",
  "severity": "HIGH",
  "detectability": [
    "HUMAN"
  ],
  "failureClass": "TERMINAL_EVIDENCE",
  "authorities": [
    "Twilio",
    "HighLevel"
  ],
  "applicabilityText": "Applies to every 10DLC registration.",
  "universal": true,
  "remediation": "Attach the IRS CP-575 or a 147C letter. If neither is to hand, request a 147C from the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line before filing — it is free and it is the document the appeal actually needs.",
  "notes": "We cannot see which document is attached. What the user has to do is check the letterhead: a state incorporation certificate, a state tax registration or a good-standing certificate will not carry the appeal, and sending one costs a full cycle before anyone says so.",
  "phase": "approval",
  "automated": false,
  "attestation": {
    "question": "Is the document you are attaching federal — a CP-575 or 147C — rather than a state filing?",
    "howToCheck": [
      "Read the letterhead. A state incorporation certificate, a state tax registration or a certificate of good standing will not carry the appeal.",
      "No federal letter to hand: request a 147C from the IRS Business & Specialty Tax Line before filing the appeal. It is free."
    ],
    "failureLooksLike": "The state certificate is the one the business has in a drawer, so it is the one that gets sent. The appeal fails with a perfectly official document attached, and a full cycle is lost before anyone says why."
  },
  "url": "https://ekas.io/rules/10dlc/brand/brd-261/",
  "markdown": "https://ekas.io/rules/10dlc/brand/brd-261.md",
  "registry": "https://ekas.io/rules/10dlc/",
  "updated": "2026-07-25",
  "licence": "CC BY 4.0 — https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"
}