Money for filing? Scam alert!

By George Saenz, Bankrate.com

Dear Tax Talk,

Does the government give money just for filing taxes? I received a call from a person saying that I had won $8,000 for doing my taxes every year. She said that it was a federal grant given each year, but in order to accept it I had to make a payment of $245.

I then proceeded to ask her if I would receive a booklet filled with the information, in which she stated "yes." I then asked her if I could wait to receive the booklet before I accepted it; she said "no." She told me that I had to accept by phone or else she couldn't send out the package. I declined the offer because it sounded a little strange and she was very pushy, not to mention very mean. Is this possible? Can you receive grants just for filing your taxes and if so why?

-- Sherry

Dear Sherry,

If the government gave away money for doing tax returns, we would all be much poorer. The reality is that the government gets its money when we do our taxes, not the other way around.

You were right to decline the offer, as I hope you would any time someone offers you something that sounds too good to be true. You might want to check out the national Do Not Call registry.

The Internal Revenue Service is always attuned to frauds and schemes. The IRS maintains part of its Web site to detailing the types of fraud offered and committed. If someone offers you a tax opportunity that sounds too good to be true, you might want to browse this section of the IRS site.

Additionally the IRS has a list of the dirty dozen scams making the rounds at this time. If you think you're being scammed, you can report suspected tax fraud activity by calling 1-800-829-0433. simply a worry and nothing else.

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