Do you know what your requirements are when you sign a tax return?
Has a tax preparer promised you large refunds, and never asked you to review the return or verify the numbers?
Or even sign the return?
Have you magically received a check from a tax preparer as part of your “refund” and you weren’t sure why you even had a refund?
Be warned: If a tax refund seems to good to be true, it may not be. I am writing this article because today I received a third phone call from a taxpayer who has been contacted by the IRS because they suspect a fraudulent tax return.
In all cases, the taxpayer was promised large (and fraudulent) refunds by the tax preparer, never saw nor signed a return, and in all cases the IRS has opened a fraud investigation, and who is taking the heat? The taxpayer, not the tax preparer, who is no where to be found! Guard your personal information, and do not get scammed when preparing a tax return. If you are self-employed – and most of you are – to be promised a large refund should raise red flags.
Please contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 if you think you have been scammed or are the victim of identity theft.