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IRS Letter 5071C: Preventing Identity Loss One Verification at a Time

What if someone tries to submit a tax return in your name? Identity thieves often steal personal information from taxpayers in order to file fraudulent tax returns and pocket their refunds. But wait! Does the IRS do anything to keep these identity thieves from making off with your hard-earned refund? You can rest assured that the IRS has processes in place for identity theft. They use their handy Letter 5071C to obtain information from taxpayers to verify their identities. This additional information is meant to help the IRS prevent fraudulent tax returns from sneaking through their system.

What does Letter 5071C say?

Letter 5071C informs you that the IRS has received a tax return with your name and/or social security number. It also lets you know that they need to verify the identity of the recipient of the notice.

How do I respond to Letter 5071C?

You have two options to respond:

  1. You can verify your identity using the IRS Identity Verification Service
  2. Alternatively, you can call the IRS on the toll-free Identity Verification number in the upper corner of your letter

When using either of these two contact methods, you should have a copy of your last filed tax return and your current year’s tax return, along with other documents that verify your identity. Until your identity is verified, the IRS will not complete the processing of your return.

If you filed the return and there was no identity theft, the IRS should process the return in approximately six weeks. If you did not file the return, then you must contact the IRS immediately using either of the two methods shared above.

Will the IRS contact me outside of Letter 5071C to verify my identity?

The IRS will not ask you to confirm your identity via email or phone. Fraudsters use a number of tactics to deceive taxpayers, including sending out fake emails, letters or making phone calls. You should only respond to Letter 5017C to verify your identity and only use the two methods given above to provide information to the IRS.

Tools like our TaxSafe™ plan can also help ensure that your identity is protected no matter what.