- Phone Scams: Aggressive and threatening
phone calls by criminals impersonating IRS agents remains an ongoing
threat to taxpayers. The IRS has seen a surge of these phone scams in
recent months as scam artists threaten police arrest, deportation,
license revocation and other things. The IRS reminds taxpayers to guard
against all sorts of con games that arise during any filing season. (IR-2015-5)
- Phishing: Taxpayers need to be on guard against fake emails
or websites looking to steal personal information. The IRS will not send
you an email about a bill or refund out of the blue. Don’t click on one
claiming to be from the IRS that takes you by surprise. Taxpayers
should be wary of clicking on strange emails and websites. They may be
scams to steal your personal information. (IR-2015-6)
- Identity Theft: Taxpayers need to watch out for identity
theft especially around tax time. The IRS continues to aggressively
pursue the criminals that file fraudulent returns using someone else’s
Social Security number. The IRS is making progress on this front but
taxpayers still need to be extremely careful and do everything they can
to avoid becoming a victim. (IR-2015-7)
- Return Preparer Fraud: Taxpayers need to be on the lookout
for unscrupulous return preparers. The vast majority of tax
professionals provide honest high-quality service. But there are some
dishonest preparers who set up shop each filing season to perpetrate
refund fraud, identity theft and other scams that hurt taxpayers. Return
preparers are a vital part of the U.S. tax system. About 60 percent of
taxpayers use tax professionals to prepare their returns. (IR-2015-8)
- Offshore Tax Avoidance: The recent string
of successful enforcement actions against offshore tax cheats and the
financial organizations that help them shows that it’s a bad bet to hide
money and income offshore. Taxpayers are best served by coming in
voluntarily and getting their taxes and filing requirements in order.
The IRS offers the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP) to help
people get their taxes in order. (IR-2015-09)
- Inflated Refund Claims: Taxpayers need to
be on the lookout for anyone promising inflated refunds. Taxpayers
should be wary of anyone who asks them to sign a blank return, promise a
big refund before looking at their records, or charge fees based on a
percentage of the refund. Scam artists use flyers, advertisements, phony
store fronts and word of mouth via community groups and churches in
seeking victims. (IR-2015-12)
- Fake Charities: Taxpayers should be on guard against groups
masquerading as charitable organizations to attract donations from
unsuspecting contributors. Contributors should take a few extra minutes
to ensure their hard-earned money goes to legitimate and currently
eligible charities. IRS.gov has the tools taxpayers need to check out
the status of charitable organizations. Be wary of charities with names
that are similar to familiar or nationally known organizations. (IR-2015-16)
- Hiding Income with Fake Documents: Hiding taxable income by
filing false Form 1099s or other fake documents is a scam that taxpayers
should always avoid and guard against. The mere suggestion of
falsifying documents to reduce tax bills or inflate tax refunds is a
huge red flag when using a paid tax return preparer. Taxpayers are
legally responsible for what is on their returns regardless of who
prepares the returns. (IR-2015-18)
- Abusive Tax Shelters: Taxpayers should avoid using abusive
tax structures to avoid paying taxes. The IRS is committed to stopping
complex tax avoidance schemes and the people who create and sell them.
The vast majority of taxpayers pay their fair share, and everyone should
be on the lookout for people peddling tax shelters that sound too good
to be true. When in doubt, taxpayers should seek an independent opinion
regarding complex products they are offered. (IR-2015-19)
- Falsifying Income to Claim Credits: Taxpayers should avoid inventing income to erroneously claim tax credits. Taxpayers are sometimes talked into doing this by scam artists. Taxpayers are best served by filing the most-accurate return possible because they are legally responsible for what is on their return. (IR-2015-20)
- Excessive Claims for Fuel Tax Credits:
Taxpayers need to avoid improper claims for fuel tax credits. The fuel
tax credit is generally limited to off-highway business use, including
use in farming. Consequently, the credit is not available to most
taxpayers. But yet, the IRS routinely finds unscrupulous preparers who
have enticed sizable groups of taxpayers to erroneously claim the credit
to inflate their refunds. (IR-2015-21)
- Frivolous Tax Arguments: Taxpayers should avoid using frivolous tax arguments to avoid paying their taxes. Promoters of frivolous schemes encourage taxpayers to make unreasonable and outlandish claims to avoid paying the taxes they owe. These arguments are wrong and have been thrown out of court. While taxpayers have the right to contest their tax liabilities in court, no one has the right to disobey the law or disregard their responsibility to pay taxes. The penalty for filing a frivolous tax return is $5,000. (IR-2015-23)
Additional information about tax scams is available on IRS social media sites, including YouTube http://www.youtube.com/irsvideos and Tumblr http://internalrevenueservice.tumblr.com, where people can search “scam” to find all the scam-related posts.
Your Constructive Comments are Welcome!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your Constructive Comments Are Welcome!