ATLANTA –
Tax filing season officially starts on Wednesday, January 30, when the IRS first begins accepting tax returns. It is also the first day that the Georgia Department of Revenue will begin processing more than four million individual returns. Like last year, the Department will be putting an emphasis on catching perpetrators of fraud and keeping fraudulent tax dollars from leaving the Treasury.
Last year, the Georgia Department of Revenue put new security measures in place and stopped just over $98 million in fraudulent refunds. This year, the Department will again be fighting to protect Georgia taxpayers against fraud. With the increase in fraudulent filings over the last several years, the Department of Revenue will continue using all available resources to keep taxpayers’ identity safe from tax fraud.
Like 2012, the Department will process each return comparing it to information in a database to ensure that the information provided on the return is accurate. If a tax return is flagged by our process because of potential inconsistencies, the taxpayer will be asked to provide the Department with some additional information in order to process the return.
“Our Office of Special Investigations has done a great job fighting fraud and protecting tax payer money over the last several years,” said Department of Revenue Commissioner Doug MacGinnitie. “Stopping fraud continues to be a Department priority, and we will continue using all available resources to protect tax payers and their tax dollars.”
With millions of returns to process, the Department anticipates that filing electronically will be the fastest way for taxpayers to get their refund. Taxpayers who correctly file their returns electronically and have their refunds deposited directly into their bank accounts will receive their refund within an average of seven to ten business days. Refunds for taxpayers who correctly file paper returns will take around three weeks. |
