Instead of receiving a refund for 2016 I received a notice that my refund had been applied to 2007 taxes, which were $21k. I can't pay this amount in full immediately. I tried to apply for an online payment agreement with the IRS, but it says I must call. I have been on hold for upwards of an hour over the past 2 days and still haven't talked to anyone there.

It mentions that you have to have filed the previous 5 years of taxes to apply online, however, I didn't file in 2012, 2013 or 2014.

Each year I used the IRS Interactive Tax Assistant to determine if I was required to file, and each year it said it wasn't required.

Should I just file the old tax forms anyway (I could do it today) while waiting to speak to an actual person? Should I send them in with form 9465, the paper application for payment agreement?

Thanks.

The IRS will send a notice or a letter for any number of reasons. It may be about a specific issue on your federal tax return or account, or etc.You can handle most of this correspondence without calling or visiting an IRS office if you follow the instructions in the document. If you have a balance on your tax account, you?ll get a notice letting you know how much you owe, when it?s due, and how to pay.If you can?t pay the full amount by that date, you need to figure out what payment options might work for your situation, and act to set up a payment plan or other way to pay off your balance.you may contact IRS taxpayer advocate service; the Taxpayer Advocate Service is an independent organization within the IRS and is your voice at the IRS. They offer free help to guide you through the often-confusing process of resolving tax problems that you haven't been able to solve on your own.
TAS can help if you can't resolve your problem with the IRS and your problem is causing financial difficulties for you, your family, or your business; You face (or your business is facing) an immediate threat of adverse action;You've tried repeatedly to contact the IRS but no one has responded to you, or the IRS hasn't responded by the date promised.
Each state has at least one Local Taxpayer Advocate who is independent of the local IRS office and reports directly to the National Taxpayer Advocate. Yo may select your home state to find the phone number and address of the Taxpayer Advocate Service office nearest you. You can also call this toll-free number to find out if TAS can help you: 1-877-777-4778.