1. PHONE SCAMS.    Aggressive and threatening phone calls by criminals impersonating IRS agents remain ongoing threats to taxpayers. Scam artists threaten arrest, deportation, license revocation and other things.

2. PHISHING.    Fake emails or websites looking to steal personal information. The IRS does not send individuals an email about a bill or refund out of the blue.

3. IDENTITY THEFT.    Criminals file fraudulent returns using someone else’s Social Security number.

4. RETURN PREPARER FRAUD.    Unscrupulous return preparers can prey on the 60% of taxpayers who use tax professionals to prepare their returns. These fraud artists set up shop each filing season to perpetrate refund fraud, identity theft and other scams that hurt taxpayers.

 5. OFFSHORE TAX AVOIDANCE.    Hiding money and income offshore is tax evasion.

6. FALSELY PADDING DEDUCTIONS.    Many taxpayers have the urge to “fudge” the numbers, often in relatively innocuous and insignificant amounts, audits are generated by an increasingly sophisticated automated system, and any inconsistencies are more likely to be caught and can lead to monetary penalties and even criminal charges.

7. INFLATED REFUND CLAIMS.    Taxpayers need to be wary of anyone promising inflated refunds, asking them to sign a blank return, and promising a big refund before looking at their records or charging fees based on a percentage of upcoming refunds.

8. FAKE CHARITIES.    Groups masquerade as charitable organizations to attract donations from unsuspecting contributors. IRS.gov has the tools taxpayers need to check out the status of charitable organizations.

9. ABUSIVE TAX SHELTERS.    Complex and abusive tax structures that offer tax avoidance.

10. FALSIFYING INCOME TO CLAIM CREDITS.    Taxpayers should avoid inventing income to erroneously claim tax credits.

11. EXCESSIVE CLAIMS FOR BUSINESS CREDITS.    The IRS expanded the category this year to encompass all business credits, with particular focus on the aforementioned fuel credit and the research credit.

12. FRIVOLOUS TAX ARGUMENTS.    Promoters of frivolous schemes encourage taxpayers to make unreasonable and outlandish claims to avoid paying the taxes they owe.