How Identity Theft Changes the Filing Process


        An ever-present threat that we must all deal with is Identity Theft. Despite our best efforts, we may become a victim to one of these schemes. Going through this ordeal is challenging and stressful, however immediate action is necessary. Contact the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to stop the use of your personal information in fraudulent tax returns. But you must live your life, which includes continuing to file tax returns. How does this event change the way a Taxpayer files their taxes?

          Moving forward, the FTB will manually review your tax returns. This is to confirm the tax return is valid and will continue for years after the report of Identity Theft. A situation like this can delay a tax refund from the FTB up to 60 days. If a fraudulent tax return is filed before a valid one, the taxpayer will have to use paper forms and submit them to the FTB for processing. Sadly, this will be the situation that victims of Identity Theft will be in. It may be difficult, but you can make it through.

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