IRS Has Money Back For You
It's a Holiday Treat from the Taxman who's got millions of dollars in Refund Checks the agency's trying to get back to local taxpayers.
The IRS just announced it's looking for thousands of Florida taxpayers to give them back almost $20 million dollars in refunds.
What's the problem?
The IRS says it can't find them. And that's why it's now looking for more than 11-thousand Florida residents owed on the average about 17-hundred dollars each.
Statewide, the refunds add up to almost $20 million dollars.
They include about 5,000 taxpayers in South Florida alone owed some $9 Million dollars between Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach.
The agency just released its latest refund listings.
Local IRS Spokesman Mike Dobzinski says "These are checks that have been returned as undeliverable and we have no way of knowing where to send them. ..about $20 million dollars worth with the average check amount of $1747 dollars."
The IRS's forgotten money program is not like the states'. Because of federal privacy laws, it can't post the names on the internet. But it turns out you do have a way to check it out yourself.
The IRS's website has a special section called "Where's My Refund?"
You can check it out yourself. But you do need to have your personal tax information available to prove your identity.
That means you'll need your social security number, your filing status, and a copy of your tax return to know how much of a refund you should be getting back.
Dobzinski says " The best thing they can do is look up Where's my refund on our IRS.gov site. You put in your personal information to see if there's a claim for you. You can also call 1-800-829-1040 for information or go to our website".
But if the taxman knows how to find you when you owe him money, what's the problem when he's got money to give back?
Dobzinski adds" We do our best to find people, we send out notices and repeat mailings to find people owed refunds. If anyone is owed a refund and hasn't gotten it yet, they do need to contact us."
Another way to make sure to get your Tax Refund, according to the IRS, is to E-File and ask for a Direct Deposit into your bank account.
The IRS warns it never contacts taxpayers by email to advise them about refunds and advises if you get any Emails or other questionable contacts alleging they are from the IRS, they're identity theft attempts.
While the IRS can't publish its refund list, we can.
It's available for you on our CBS4.Com website.
Links:
"Where's My Refund?" http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96596,00.html?portlet=8
For more Information: 800-829-4933
