The IRS never calls to demand immediate payment, threaten arrest, or demand gift cards. If you get a call like this, it is 100% a scam. The IRS always contacts taxpayers first by mail.
About this scam type: Phone calls claiming to be from the IRS
ScamRadar verdict: scam · Risk score: 97/100
Caller: This is Officer James Henderson with the Internal Revenue Service, badge number 4471. We have a federal warrant for your arrest due to unpaid back taxes totaling $4,892.17. Local police have been dispatched to your address. To resolve this immediately and avoid arrest, you must purchase $4,892 in Apple gift cards or Target gift cards and provide me the redemption codes within the next 30 minutes.
Every part of this script is a lie. The IRS never threatens arrest, never demands gift cards, never sets short deadlines, and never uses local police as enforcement. This exact script has been recorded in tens of thousands of complaints.
If you already paid by gift card, contact the gift card company immediately — Apple at 1-800-275-2273, Google Play at the gift card support page, Target Guest Services at 1-800-544-2943, eBay at 1-866-540-3229. Provide your receipt and the card numbers; recovery is rare but sometimes possible if reported within hours. If you paid by wire transfer, call your bank immediately and request a recall. If you provided a Social Security number or banking info, place a fraud alert and credit freeze with all three credit bureaus, file at IdentityTheft.gov, and submit Form 14039 to the IRS to flag your tax account. File the IRS impersonation complaint at TIGTA (Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration) at tigta.gov.
The IRS contacts taxpayers by physical mail first — every single time, with no exceptions. If you owe back taxes, you will receive a CP series notice (CP14, CP501, CP503, CP504) by US Postal Service mail before any other contact. Real IRS phone calls only happen after you have received written notices and only on cases you already know about. The IRS will never demand payment by gift card, prepaid card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency. You can verify any real notice by logging into your IRS account at irs.gov/account or calling the IRS directly at 1-800-829-1040.
No. The IRS contacts taxpayers by US mail first. Phone contact only happens after multiple written notices and only on cases you already know about. The IRS will never call about a debt you have not received written notice about.
Scammers buy this information from previous data breaches on the dark web. Knowing your address or partial SSN does not prove they are the IRS — that data is already out there. Check haveibeenpwned.com to see which breaches exposed your information.
File Form 14039 (Identity Theft Affidavit) with the IRS, place a free fraud alert with Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, freeze your credit (also free), file a report at IdentityTheft.gov for a personalized recovery plan, and monitor your tax transcript at irs.gov/account for any unauthorized filings.
No. The IRS does not have arrest authority over civil tax debts. Criminal tax cases are handled by IRS Criminal Investigation through formal legal process, never by a surprise phone call demanding gift card payment.
Report to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) at tigta.gov/reportcrime, to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov, and to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov with the caller ID number, date, time, and a description of what was said.
Last reviewed: 2026-06-24 by the ScamRadar editorial team. We update this page when scammer tactics change or when official agencies issue new guidance.
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