Internal Revenue Service Reminds Taxpayers to Plan Ahead If You Need a Tax Transcript

IR-2015-140, Dec. 23, 2015                                                                                    Español

WASHINGTON — The IRS reminds taxpayers that the quickest way to get a copy of their tax transcript is to order it online using the Get Transcript application on IRS.gov. By planning ahead, they should receive their transcript in the mail within five to 10 days from the time the IRS receives the request online.

The IRS continues to work to bring the viewable/printable functionality of the application back online in the near future with enhanced identity protection security features. In the meantime, taxpayers can still request a mailed transcript by going online to Get Transcript.

Though taxpayers should always keep a copy of their tax return for their records, some may need the information from filed tax returns for many reasons. This includes college financial aid applicants or taxpayers who have applied for a loan to buy a home or start a business.

If a taxpayer is returning to college this January and applying for financial aid, they should check with their financial aid department at school to see if they will need a copy of their transcript before they start classes. Frequently, students get all the tax return information they need on the FAFSA application via the IRS Data Retrieval Tool.  

Similarly, if a taxpayer plans to apply for a loan, they should ask their financial institution if a transcript will be necessary so they can plan ahead and have it at the appropriate time.

The fastest way to get a transcript is through the Get Transcript tool on IRS.gov. Although the IRS temporarily stopped the online viewing and printing of transcripts, Get Transcript still allows taxpayers to order their transcript online and receive it by mail.  Taxpayers simply click the "Get a Transcript by Mail" button to order the paper copy of their transcript and have it sent to their address of record.  Among the options available:

• To order a transcript online and have it delivered by mail, go to IRS.gov and use the Get Transcript tool. 
• To order by phone, call 800-908-9946 and follow the prompts.
• To request an individual tax return transcript by mail or fax, complete Form 4506T-EZ, Short Form Request for Individual Tax Return Transcript. Businesses and individuals who need a tax account transcript should use Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return.

The IRS will mail the transcript to the address of record entered on the prior year’s tax return. The mailed transcript is an official document. It does not need to be a “certified” copy as is the case with some other documents. If a taxpayer has moved since they last filed a tax return with the IRS, they need to first submit Form 8822, Change of Address, to ensure that the transcript is mailed to the correct address. Allowing time for the Form 8822 is another reason for taxpayers to plan ahead for their transcript needs.  

If a taxpayer is applying for financial aid, they are encouraged to use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool on the FAFSA website to easily import their tax return information to their financial aid application. The temporary shutdown of the Get Transcript tool does not affect the Data Retrieval Tool. Taxpayers may also click on the FAFSA help page for more information.

If they are applying for a mortgage, most mortgage companies only require a tax return transcript for income verification purposes. Most of these companies participate in our IVES (Income Verification Express Service) program and can request (with the taxpayer’s consent) to have a transcript sent directly to the financial institution. If a taxpayer needs to order a transcript, they should follow the process described above and have it mailed to the address the IRS has on file for them.

Remember, ordering a transcript online is the quickest option. For more information, read the IRSHow Do I Get My Transcript? fact sheet.

IRS, Industry, States Take New Steps Together to Fight Identity Theft, Protect Taxpayers

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service joined today with representatives of tax preparation and software firms, payroll and tax financial product processors and state tax administrators to announce a sweeping new collaborative effort to combat identity theft refund fraud and protect the nation's taxpayers.

The agreement — reached after the project was originally announced March 19 — includes identifying new steps to validate taxpayer and tax return information at the time of filing. The effort will increase information sharing between industry and governments. There will be standardized sharing of suspected identity fraud information and analytics from the tax industry to identify fraud schemes and locate indicators of fraud patterns. And there will be continued collaborative efforts going forward.

"This agreement represents a new era of cooperation and collaboration among the IRS, states and the electronic tax industry that will help combat identity theft and protect taxpayers against tax refund fraud," IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said. "We've made tremendous progress, and we will continue these efforts. Taxpayers filing their tax returns next filing season should have a safer and more secure experience."

Koskinen convened a Security Summit on March 19 with the chief executive officers and leaders of private sector firm and federal and state tax administrators to discuss emerging threats on identity theft and expand existing collaborative efforts to stop fraud.

Three specialized working groups were established as part of the Summit, with members from the IRS, states and industry co-chairing and serving on each team. During the past 12 weeks, the teams focused on developing ways to validate the authenticity of taxpayers and information included on tax return submissions, information sharing to improve detection and expand prevention of refund fraud, and threat assessment and strategy development to prevent risks and threats.

The groups agreed to several important new initiatives in this unprecedented effort, including:

Taxpayer authentication. The industry and government groups identified numerous new data elements that can be shared at the time of filing to help authenticate a taxpayer and detect identity theft refund fraud. The data will be submitted to the IRS and states with the tax return transmission for the 2016 filing season. Some of these issues include, but are not limited to:

• • Reviewing the transmission of the tax return, including the improper and or repetitive use of Internet Protocol numbers, the Internet ‘address’ from which the return is originating.
  • Reviewing computer device identification data tied to the return’s origin.
  • Reviewing the time it takes to complete a tax return, so computer mechanized fraud can be detected.
  • Capturing metadata in the computer transaction that will allow review for identity theft related fraud.  

Fraud identification. The groups agreed to expand sharing of fraud leads. For the first time, the entire tax industry and other parts of the tax industry will share aggregated analytical information about their filings with the IRS to help identify fraud. This post-return filing process has produced valuable fraud information because trends are easier to identify with aggregated data. Currently, the IRS obtains this analytical information from some groups. The expanded effort will ensure a level playing field so everyone approaches fraud from the same perspective, making it more difficult for the perpetration of fraud schemes.

Information assessment. In addition to continuing cooperative efforts, the groups will look at establishing a formalized Refund Fraud Information Sharing and Assessment Center (ISAC) to more aggressively and efficiently share information between the public and private sector to help stop the proliferation of fraud schemes and reduce the risk to taxpayers. This would help in many ways, including providing better data to law enforcement to improve the investigations and prosecution of identity thieves.

Cybersecurity framework. Participants with the tax industry agreed to align with the IRS and states under the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) cybersecurity framework to promote the protection of information technology (IT) infrastructure. The IRS and states currently operate under this standard, as do many in the tax industry.

Taxpayer awareness and communication. The IRS, industry and states agreed that more can be done to inform taxpayers and raise awareness about the protection of sensitive personal, tax and financial data to help prevent refund fraud and identity theft. These efforts have already started, and will increase through the year and expand in conjunction with the 2016 filing season.

"Industry, states and the IRS all have a role to play in this effort," Koskinen said. "We share a common enemy in those stealing personal information and perpetrating refund fraud and we share a common goal of protecting taxpayers. We want to build these changes into the DNA of the entire tax system to make it safer."

Many major system and process changes will be made this summer and fall by the participants in order to be ready for the 2016 filing season. The public-private partnership also will continue this cooperative, collaborative approach to address not just short-term issues but longer-term issues facing the tax community and taxpayers.

The partnership parties recognize the need to continuously improve our tax system defenses for combating this threat to taxpayers and our tax system, Koskinen added. Those defenses include a continually improving multi-level identity proofing and authentication capability that anticipates and stops threats.

"I applaud the industry and the states for stepping forward to take on this challenge and making the needed changes," Koskinen. "This is good for taxpayers, good for tax administrators and good for the tax community."

Koskinen emphasized that a continuing theme throughout this effort focuses on protecting taxpayer information and privacy. “Working together we can achieve results that none of us, working alone, could accomplish,” he said.

In addition to companies from the private sector, the summit team included several groups including the Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC), the Federation of Tax Administrators (FTA) representing the states, the Council for Electronic Revenue Communication Advancement (CERCA) and the American Coalition for Taxpayer Rights (ACTR).

Related Item: Security Summit: Protecting Taxpayers from Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud

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Page Last Reviewed or Updated: 11-Jun-2015

IRS Statement on the "Get Transcript" Application

The IRS announced today that criminals used taxpayer-specific data acquired from non-IRS sources to gain unauthorized access to information on approximately 100,000 tax accounts through IRS’ “Get Transcript” application. This data included Social Security information, date of birth and street address.

These third parties gained sufficient information from an outside source before trying to access the IRS site, which allowed them to clear a multi-step authentication process, including several personal verification questions that typically are only known by the taxpayer. The matter is under review by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration as well as the IRS’ Criminal Investigation unit, and the “Get Transcript” application has been shut down temporarily. The IRS will provide free credit monitoring services for the approximately 100,000 taxpayers whose accounts were accessed. In total, the IRS has identified 200,000 total attempts to access data and will be notifying all of these taxpayers about the incident.

Taxpayers Receiving Identity Verification Letter Should Use IDVerify.irs.gov

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service today reminded taxpayers who receive requests from the IRS to verify their identities that the Identity Verification Service website, idverify.irs.gov, offers the fastest, easiest way to complete the task.

Taxpayers may receive a letter when the IRS stops suspicious tax returns that have indications of being identity theft but contains a real taxpayer’s name and/or Social Security number. Only those taxpayers receiving Letter 5071C should access idverify.irs.gov.

The website will ask a series of questions that only the real taxpayer can answer.

Falsifying Income to Claim Tax Credits Hits the IRS “Dirty Dozen” List of Tax Scams for the 2015 Filing Season

 WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today warned taxpayers about schemes to erroneously claim tax credits is on the annual list of tax scams known as the “Dirty Dozen” again for the 2015 filing season.

“Scam artists don't miss a trick and they can entice taxpayers to falsely inflate income on returns to claim tax credits they are not entitled to receive," said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. "Taxpayers are ultimately responsible for the information on their tax returns, and I urge everyone to file the most accurate return possible."

Compiled annually, the “Dirty Dozen” lists a variety of common scams that taxpayers may encounter anytime but many of these schemes peak during filing season as people prepare their returns or hire professionals to do so.

Illegal scams can lead to significant penalties and interest and possible criminal prosecution. IRS Criminal Investigation works closely with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to shutdown scams and prosecute the criminals behind them.

Don’t Create Fake Income to Qualify for a Credit

Some people falsely increase the income they report to the IRS. This scam involves inflating or including income on a tax return that was never earned, either as wages or as self-employment income, usually in order to maximize refundable credits.

Just like falsely claiming an expense or deduction you did not pay, claiming income you did not earn in order to secure larger refundable credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit could have serious repercussions. This could result in taxpayers facing a large bill to repay the erroneous refunds, including interest and penalties. In some cases, they can even face criminal prosecution.

Taxpayers may encounter unscrupulous return preparers who make them aware of this scam. Remember: Taxpayers are legally responsible for what’s on their tax return even if it is prepared by someone else. Make sure the preparer you hire is up to the task.

Here are a few tips when choosing a tax preparer:

Filing Season 2014 Begins with More Returns Filed

IR-2014-15, Feb. 14, 2014

WASHINGTON — The IRS today announced that tax filings in 2014 have outpaced filings for the same time last year. As of Feb. 7, the IRS received 27.3 million returns, up 2.5 percent compared to the same time last year. Electronically filed returns account for almost 96 percent of those filed so far this year.

Taxpayers, either through tax preparers or from their home computers, have e-filed more than 26 million returns so far this year, up almost 4 percent compared to the same time last year. As of Feb. 7, taxpayers have filed more than 13 million returns from home computers, an increase of 14.7 percent compared to the same period last year.

Refunds are up for 2014, with almost 19.5 million issued this year, an increase of more than 18 percent compared to the same time last year. The average refund as of Feb. 7 is $3,317, up 4.6 percent compared to the same time last year. (Refund averages generally have higher dollar values early in the filing season than later in the year.)

Most refunds are directly deposited into taxpayer accounts; just over 87 percent of all refunds issued were directly deposited as of Feb. 7. 2014.

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The IRS is committed to working with taxpayers who are the victims of identity theft

Source: IRS.gov | Page Last Reviewed or Updated: 18-Dec-2013

The IRS has taken numerous steps to combat identity theft and protect taxpayers. We are continually looking at ways to increase data security and protect taxpayers' identities with assistance from our Identity Protection Specialized Unit. Identity theft cases are among the most complex ones we handle.

We know identity theft is a frustrating process for victims. We take this issue very seriously and continue to expand on our robust screening process in order to stop fraudulent returns and protect innocent taxpayers.

On this page, you will find a wide range of information. Depending upon your personal circumstances, the information found here will cover a variety of scenarios involving identity theft, ranging from contacting us with a case of identity theft to providing tips to help keep your records safe.

Interest Rates Remain the Same for the First Quarter of 2014

IR-2013-96, Dec. 9, 2013
WASHINGTON ― The Internal Revenue Service today announced that interest rates will remain the same for the calendar quarter beginning Jan. 1, 2014.  The rates will be:

• three (3) percent for over payments [two (2) percent in the case of a corporation];
• three (3) percent for underpayments;
• five (5) percent for large corporate underpayments; and
• one-half (0.5) percent for the portion of a corporate over payment exceeding $10,000.

IRS Offers Tips for Year-End Giving

IR-2013-98, Dec. 16, 2013

WASHINGTON — Individuals and businesses making contributions to charity should keep in mind several important tax law provisions that have taken effect in recent years. Some of these changes include the following:

Special Tax-Free Charitable Distributions for Certain IRA Owners.

This provision, currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2013, offers older owners of individual retirement arrangements (IRAs) a different way to give to charity. An IRA owner, age 70½ or over, can directly transfer tax-free up to $100,000 per year to an eligible charity. This option, first available in 2006, can be used for distributions from IRAs, regardless of whether the owners itemize their deductions. Distributions from employer-sponsored retirement plans, including SIMPLE IRAs and simplified employee pension (SEP) plans, are not eligible.

2014 Tax Season to Open Jan. 31; e-file and Free File Can Speed Refunds

IR-2013-100, Dec. 18, 2013

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced plans to open the 2014 filing season on Jan. 31 and encouraged taxpayers to use e-file or Free File as the fastest way to receive refunds.