As long as they don't kill FreeFillableForms...
a) You're already trusting them with every piece of information in your tax return. It'd cost like five cents to use that information to discover your phone number... if they're malicious, you're already fucked.
b) When? At the end of the process where you're doing stuff like attesting that you're not lied on your tax return? I don't remember them demanding a phone number up front, and I also don't remember whether or not I refused to provide a phone number at the end.
You have the option of entering your
phone number and email address in the
spaces provided. There will be no effect
on the processing of your return if you
choose not to enter this information.
Note that the IRS initiates most contacts
through regular mail delivered by the
United States Postal Service.(The efiling never worked for me, always complained about something esoteric.)
They’re just values as far as it’s concerned. And it is dumped every October. But phone # validation up front is too much, an overstep.
Like I said, I just used it for the calc ability so a spreadsheet works as well. Bit of work the first year, then tweak.
> But phone # validation up front is too much, an overstep.
They definitely didn't do this to me any of the years I've used them to file taxes. When did you file yours? Did you file them long after the 2024 taxes were due?
Very odd. I wonder (but not enough to investigate) what's so different between your situation and mine that I'd not be asked for a phone number during initial configuration.
"Email and phone verification
If you are not receiving the verification codes, from both sources, you will not be able to create an account:"
But if you're a rich person with dozens of companies and complicated trusts? Yep, nobody is going to be looking.
https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF12521#:~:text=The%20I...
And they _will_ find them. For example, one year I forgot to add a line from one of 1040 forms to my return. I got a notification from the IRS about a year later that I have under-reported taxes.
And with the defunding of the IRS, they'll severely limit the complex audits.
"After mass firings, the IRS is poised to close audits of wealthy taxpayers, agents say" https://www.icij.org/inside-icij/2025/03/after-mass-firings-...