- Over five hundred thousand taxpayers face a twenty-month wait time for identity theft resolution.
- The current processing speed is five times slower than the agency’s one hundred twenty-day benchmark.
- Account freezes prevent fraud but block access to transcripts required for immigration and loans.
UNITED STATES — As of June 29, 2026, more than 500,000 victims of tax-related identity theft are waiting an average of 20 months for relief from the IRS. The backlog intersects with immigration processes that require tax transcripts and with a legal battle over government data sharing.
The Internal Revenue Service sets an internal target of 120 days to resolve identity theft cases. The current average stretches to roughly 600 days. That is five times longer than the agency’s own benchmark. National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins called the delays “unconscionable” in her mid-year report to Congress on June 24, 2026.
On March 5, 2026, the IRS released its annual “Dirty Dozen” tax scams list. Agency leadership pledged to reduce the resolution timeframe to 120 days, though no deadline was given for meeting that target.
Tax-related identity theft occurs when someone uses another person’s Social Security number to file a fraudulent return and claim a refund. When the IRS detects a conflict, it freezes the account while investigating. That freeze protects the taxpayer from further fraud. It also locks access to the account’s tax transcripts, which federal agencies and private lenders rely on for verification.
