The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is very strict when it comes to payment of taxes. In trying to fulfill your obligations as a taxpayer, it remains important to keep an eye out for fraudsters that waylay taxpayers with all sorts of schemes including threatening an IRS tax investigation. The IRS makes a concerted effort to warn taxpayers about the existence and form of such schemes. This blog looks at how to spot tax scams and avoid them.
Email Scams
The Internal Revenue Service does not initiate any contact with taxpayers through emails if they need any personal or financial information. As there are quite a lot of people that still don’t use emails, the IRS prefers reaching out to all the taxpayers by mailing them a paper bill for the dues first. In very special cases, the IRS might call or visit your residence or business.
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What Should You Do?
In the event you come across any tax-related emails that ask for private information, it is strongly advised to immediately report it to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov. In addition, you must not open any attachments, click on links, reply to the sender or carry out any similar action that can compromise your safety.
Phone Scams
As mentioned above, the IRS always prefers to send paper bills through the mail to individuals with tax dues. This can be to inform them of the various methods available for them to pay their dues. Fraudsters can fake caller ID numbers and even spoof the phone numbers of the IRS offices, federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies. When it comes to the things the IRS does not do – It doesn’t leave any pre-recorded, urgent, or threatening messages on answering systems. In addition, it doesn’t threaten to bring in police to get the taxpayer arrested or deported for not paying their dues. Furthermore, it won’t ask for third-party checks or request for immediate payment of dues through any means, be it cash transfer, credit cards, debit cards, or gift cards. Finally, the IRS does not take away your right to question or appeal a decision or the amount owed when demanding payment of outstanding taxes.
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What Should You Do?
If a taxpayer ever receives tax-related phone calls, it is strongly advised to refrain from giving out any private information and disconnect the call immediately. Next, report the caller ID and callback number to phishing@irs.gov while remembering to write “IRS Phone Scam” in the subject line. In addition, make sure to report the call to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and the Federal Trade Commission.
Conclusion
Fraudsters are always looking to target taxpayers by usually issuing threats to get them to comply. When looking for help regarding such scammers or IRS tax investigations in Dallas, our team of proficient tax resolution attorneys at the Law Offices of Nick Nemeth offer some of the best IRS problem resolutions. Give us a call at (972) 426-2553 for a free consultation. You can fill our Contact Form, and our team of the Dallas IRS lawyers will get back to you at the earliest.
