Dirty Dozen 2020: Fake Payments with Repayment Demands

    Criminals are always finding new ways to get people to believe their scams. This now includes putting money into the bank accounts of Taxpayers. Fake payments with repayment demands is the next entry on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Dirty Dozen list of 2020.

    After stealing a Taxpayers Social Security number or their Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and bank account information, a con artist will file a fake tax return and have the refund deposited into their account. Later they will call pretending to be the IRS and claiming there was a mistake and demanding the refund be returned immediately. They will always be told to use gift cards.

    Taxpayers have the right to many payment options and the IRS will never demand a specific one. Taxpayers always have the right to question how much in tax responsibility they owe. If you ever receive a surprise phone call about a refund repayment, reach out to your Qualified Tax Professional, call the IRS and talk to your banking institution.

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