got a duplicate income tax check?

Question

ok back in may. my income tax check was taking longer than expected to get to the house. so i called irs to have a trace done. of course to do that, they had to have it cancelled. that same day i got the check, was able to cash it. but now i got another income tax for the same exact amount. if i cash this check, whats the interest rate in which ill have to pay it back??

Answer 1

can I have it?

Answer 2

Call them or write them a letter. Since they cancelled the check you cashed there could be further problems as a direct result. Hold onto the check and don't alter it in any way. They might ask for it back, they may wish to put a cancel order on the new check (since you successfully cashed the first one) or they may want you to destroy it, but check with them before you do anything else.

Answer 3

You can have it if you have no properties or cash in US soil, the next thing is to move to places like Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Taiwan, China, Middleeast countries except Kuwait where there isn't any tax treaty wit US. Kidding :-)

Remember, IRS can always reach you and bust you in most of the countries around the world. My advise is that you better call IRS up and return the check.

Answer 4

Chances are that this is the check that a "stop payment" was done on, and it should throw an 'alert' up when someone tries to cash it. I don't know if I'd try it or not....and then again, cash it and say "hey I didn't know the government made mistakes" LOL just kidding. Good Luck in whatever you decide.

Answer 5

Hmmm... It is worth a try I guess to try to cash it. Maybe they will not catch on. But if they do who knows what they will do. Maybe cash it and put it away somewhere for a year or so and then if they haven't caught on by then you may be free and clear. Good luck. I just hope nobody from IRS is reading this now and will report you. Anything to get away with from the government is worth it though.

Answer 6

I would keep it, not cash it, and not return it. First, who would you send it to? If the IRS receives a check back, it may confuse them...and the last thing you want to do is confuse the IRS.

Trust me. A client of mine did this and then got a bunch of letters from the IRS and two more checks...it just served to confuse them.

Oh...and if you have their money, they can charge you up to 8% interest on the money.

Answer 7

I have a friend who got a duplicate check once. If you cash it you could be in heaps in trouble. First of all they can pin fraud charges on you. Secondly they may not realise their mistake till a year or two and by then the amount of check PLUS interest PLUS fines and penalties could be double or close to triple the amount PLUS if they have to file in court they will add court fee in there.

Best Bet : return it.

Answer 8

contact the irs. If they have cancelled the check then it could bounce in your account leaving you with terrmendous fees. You need to see if it is cancelled or if you should use that check or the one they sent you. Either way if you keep that second check that is stealing, reguardless of how you like the government, and that shows lack in character in your part. Return the unused check and be an honorable person!

Answer 9

Don't cash it, it doesn't belong to you. Call the irs and tell them the situation. The consequences might not be as light as just paying it back.

Answer 10

That is like dancing on a mine field. It may take them a little while, but they will find out. And they wont be at all happy about it. As others have said, it is breaking the law and you will pay for it in more than one way.

Answer 11

Usually the maximum legally allowed. I would call them and tell them what happened, that way you don't get in trouble. I'm sure the money would be helpful but paying it back and possibly geting a criminal record isn't worth a little bit of money.