Because April 15 will fall on a Saturday and Monday, April 17, is a holiday in Washington, D.C., the tax deadline this year is Tuesday, April 18. Be alert to tax scams during tax season. They include:
• Tax relief scams: If someone offers to reduce your taxes be wary—especially if money needs to be paid up front. (The scammers will take it and run.) If you need to use a tax relief business, check them out thoroughly first.
• Federal Student Tax: Did you receive a bill for the Federal Student Tax this year? No? Good, because it doesn’t exist. You may be contacted by scammers if you are a student or the parent of a student.
• Fake Affordable Care Act notices: Scammers send a fake notice designed to look like an official ACA bill. The IRS sends notices of adjustment, not ACA bills.
• Phishy Tax Preparers: Criminals may claim to be tax preparers to trick you into giving away personal information. If you get an unsolicited email from a tax preparer, avoid clicking on links or opening attachments. Just delete the message. Also, if any tax preparer asks you to pay cash for part or all of your taxes, that’s a huge red “it’s-a-scam” flag.
• Fake IRS Agents: Criminals pose as IRS agents to call and attempt to scare you into complying with their demands. Don’t be fooled. If there is a problem, the IRS almost always makes first contact by sending a letter through the U.S. mail.
Source: Enterprise Information Technology Services