01/24/2017
SOME REFUNDS DELAYED
The Internal Revenue Service's battle against fraud and identity theft is intensifying as the tax filing season opens, and some of the neediest taxpayers are getting caught in the middle.
The agency is barred from issuing refunds before Feb. 15 on any returns claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit. Congress mandated the delay to give the IRS more time to review returns to try to catch fraudulent ones before refunds are paid out.
In reality, taxpayers taking these credits will probably have to wait even longer to get their refunds - until the week of Feb. 27, the IRS says, because of weekends and the President's Day holiday.
Dave DuVal, vice president of customer advocacy at TaxAudit.com, says the impact on these taxpayers could be tremendous. "They live paycheck to paycheck, and this is money they're counting on," he said.
The IRS will began accepting returns on Jan. 23, and tax experts recommend that Americans continue to file their returns early, even with the refund delays.
TaxAudit.com offers tax audit defense and representation services for IRS and state audits. Get IRS audit help from the experts at TaxResources, Inc.