Officials are warning people to watch out for scammers when the Internal Revenue Service starts sending out advance payments on the child tax credit.  

From July 15th through December of this year, if someone qualified for payments through the American Rescue Plan Act, the IRS is sending monthly payments by direct deposit, paper check, or through debit cards.  The payments are an advance on the child tax credit, which means eligible people will receive up to half of their child tax credit in these monthly payments and the other half when they file their 2021 taxes.  There is an option to unenroll from the advance payments program also.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, when it comes to government being in the news, the scammers will likely use their standard playbook, meaning impostor scams may appear, with con artists pretending to “help” get payments earlier, get more money, or commit identity theft.

The Better Business Bureau and the FTC have some tips on how to avoid being scammed.  We will have a link to those in this story on our website at amazingmadison.com.Â