While we all do what we can to protect our identity from theft, often we are not able to protect our tax return from tax fraud by a determined thief. In certain areas of the country, there are rings of thieves that spend their time submitting returns to attempt to steal individual tax refunds. If you are filing your return and find out that your Social Security number has been stolen, what should you do? Consulting with a tax professional, such as HCS, LLC in North Richland Hills, TX, they can assist you to work with the IRS to deal with this situation of tax fraud.
The reality is that you may not find out that your Social Security number was stolen until you file your own tax return. Once the IRS receives two different returns with the same Social Security number, the second return could be rejected and you will receive notice that your return has already been filed. However, if you suspect that your identity has been compromised, you can alert the IRS right away.
Once you receive a notice from the IRS or when you believe the tax fraud occurred, you will need to use the IRS Form 14039 to alert the IRS of the fraudulent activity. You are using this form to indicate that your identity has been stolen and you are letting them know that this has effected your tax account.
You will also need to provide information about the tax year that you suspect was the year that your identity was stolen, as well as the last return that you filed prior to the theft of your identity. Once you have completed the form, you will want to send it to the IRS along with a copy of your Social Security card and your driver’s license. If you do not have a driver’s license, you can use a copy of your passport, military ID or any other government issued identification card.
If you received a notice from the IRS, then you also want to include a copy of that notice. Mail the form and all the supporting documentation to the IRS address on your notice or if you are alerting the IRS before you receive any type of notification, check with the IRS for necessary address.
Request for Identity Verification form the IRS
The IRS may stop a suspicious return and then request that the taxpayer verify their identity. If they do so, the IRS will send a letter 5071C. This letter will list a few of the ways that you will need to verify your identity. These will include verifying a phone number or using the IRS Identity Verification Service.
This online method is the quickest method and will involve you answering multiple choice questions to verify whether or not the tax return that was flagged was actually filed by you or by someone else. The IRS will only send notices by mail, so if you receive a notice through another source, it is not from the IRS. They will not request that you verify your identity by means of email or phone.
If you cannot confirm your identity through the online method, you can call a number included on the notice you received. They will ask you for a variety of information, such as your name, date of birth, and contact information. Then they will use prior tax year information and supporting documentation information to determine that you are who you say you are.
Once this is done, the IRS can work with you to put special precautions in place to make sure that you are protected in the future. If someone effectively filed a return on your behalf, this means that your information has been compromised. Therefore, you will want to make sure that you also reach out to the credit agencies to freeze your credit report file so that unauthorized accounts cannot be opened in your name. You should also file a police report. Doing so will help you to prove that your identity was stolen if you should find more fraudulent activity in the future.
While it is possible to have your identity stolen, there is a path to take to make sure that the IRS knows the tax fraud has occurred.
Click on the link below to contact a tax professional or accountant at HCS, LLC in North Richland Hills, TX, who can assist you with filing your Form 14039.
