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IRS Identity Theft Season Begins Now
Each year thieves try to steal billions in federal withholdings by stealing your identity. As the IRS focuses more attention on this quickly growing problem, now is the time of year to be extra vigilant. Early tax filing season is the worst timeYour federal tax account at the IRS has plenty of money in it from all the taxes withheld from your paycheck during the course of the year. Until you file your tax return, the IRS does not know whether you need to pay more in or they need to refund you the excess amounts withheld. Thieves know this too, and will try to file a fraudulent tax return before you have time to submit your own. By doing this, they can steal some of your withholdings and be long gone by the time you file your own tax return. So what can you do?
File early. The sooner you file your tax return, the less likely a thief will beat you to your refund.
Get an Identity Protection PIN. All taxpayers who can verify their identity can get an Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) from the IRS. The IP PIN is a six-digit code known only to you and the IRS that helps prevent identity thieves from filing fraudulent tax returns. If you want an IP PIN, visit irs.gov/IPPIN.
Check your credit reports. See if there is any suspicious activity on your accounts and on your credit reports.
Protect your ID. Be suspicious. Never give out your Social Security Number, do not leave your credit card unattended, never give ID information to someone who called you, use the password function on your phone, be aware of strange mail, and shred important documents. Your best defense to IRS ID theft is to use best practices to protect your information.
The IRS is becoming a better spotter. If the IRS suspects something is wrong with your filed tax return they will send you a notice. If this happens to you:
  • Respond immediately. Get the direct contact information from the IRS website and let them know that you have a possible identity theft problem.
  • File an Identity Theft Affidavit (IRS Form 14039). This will record your problem with the IRS and they will take extra steps to ensure your account activity is coming from you and not the ID thief.
  • File a police report.
  • Contact the credit bureaus.
Having your identity stolen is one thing. Having your tax withholding stolen and then needing to unravel this problem within the IRS is a major hassle. Try to stay vigilant and know that there are steps to help protect your tax records. Is there good news in all this? If the IRS pays out a refund to someone stealing your identity, they are on the hook for this loss, not you.
October 25, 2024
Burzenski & Company once again supported an event at the Children's Center in Hamden. On October 24, three employees volunteered to be onsite for the Children's Center Trunk or Treat Halloween event. Callie Kutys, Shelly Panico and Carmen Rosado donned costumes and handed out candy to about 100 children. Booooooooo!
October 11, 2024
IR-2024-263, Oct. 10, 2024 WASHINGTON —The Internal Revenue Service announced today continued progress on Employee Retention Credit claims, with processing underway on about 400,000 claims, representing about $10 billion of eligible claims.
October 5, 2024
Monica Dixon Perry, CVPM, will speak at Veterinary Management Council of CT meeting
October 5, 2024
IRS Direct File set to expand availability in a dozen new states and cover wider range of tax situations for the 2025 tax filing season
September 5, 2024
On Thursday, August 29th, we held our annual state-of-the-firm and company picnic at Owenego Inn located in Branford, CT. The firm recognized the 40th employee anniversary of Partner Melody Mann Fox, CPA. Managing Partner Bill Kalinowski congratulated Melody on her tenure and accomplishments with the firm. Said Ralph L. Ricciardelli, CPA, Emeritus, a founding partner of Burzenski & Company, PC, “Mel, 40 years where does the time go? It’s not easy to build a firm and you’ve done it with a lot of grit, expertise, and professionalism. You have been integral in building the firm. You’ve been integral in helping with the staff, whether it was the administrative staff or the accounting staff. I don’t know what we would do without you. There aren’t enough words of appreciation that we can give to you.” It was a great day for employeea to play games such as bocce, corn hole, Jenga, and a trivia contest with staff split up into teams.
September 1, 2024
At the firm's annual state-of-the-firm and company picnic on August 29th, we recognized the 40th employee anniversary of Partner Melody Mann Fox, CPA. Managing Partner Bill Kalinowski congratulated Melody on her tenure and accomplishments with the firm. Said Ralph L. Ricciardelli, CPA, Emeritus, a founding partner of Burzenski & Company, PC, “Mel, 40 years where does the time go? It’s not easy to build a firm and you’ve done it with a lot of grit, expertise, and professionalism. You have been integral in building the firm. You’ve been integral in helping with the staff, whether it was the administrative staff or the accounting staff. I don’t know what we would do without you. There aren’t enough words of appreciation that we can give to you.”Mel, 40 years where does the time go? I remember when you first came to us in 1984 as a staff person. Our first tax season together was 1985. There was a lot of fun things that happened during those early years that laid the ground work for the future.
August 18, 2024
2024 Connecticut Sales Tax Free Week Highlights The 2024 Sales Tax Free Week is Sunday, August 18, through Saturday, August 24, 2024. Sales or purchases of certain items of clothing or footwear costing less than $100 per item are exempt from sales tax. This special exemption applies to purchases made from retailers located in Connecticut as well as from on-line retailers. This year will be Connecticut's 25th Sales Tax Free Week.https://portal.ct.gov/drs/sales-tax/sales-tax-free-week
July 22, 2024
Sarah Williams, formerly of Abilene, TX, has joined the staff at Burzenski & Company, as a Staff Accountant. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree as well as a Master of Accountancy degree from Abilene Christian University in Abilene, TX. Prior to joining our firm, she was as a Tax Associate. She has two cats named Fig and Peach.
July 19, 2024
Burzenski & Company, PC will close the office on Fridays at 12:00 (noon) in the months of July and August. Please contact us during our normal business hours of 8:30AM to 5:00PM. 203-468-8133
May 7, 2024
Click here to listen to the podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/536560/15017840
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