With the tax deadline drawing near, it is possible you won't get your Colorado tax refund unless you do this one thing.

In an effort to derail possible fraud schemes and protect taxpayers, the Colorado Department of Revenue has sent letters out requesting information that will help confirm the identity of tax refund recipients. If you fail to promptly respond, the state will fail to send you your refund.

If you have submitted a Colorado tax return,  you may be a candidate to receive one of these letters which states in part:

"We recently received a Colorado individual income tax return for the period indicated above. Due to increased security concerns, we need your help to confirm this is a legitimate tax return."

Information requested may be a copy of your driver's license, a document with your name and address, a copy of W-2s, refund amount, or a validation key.

The Colorado Department of Revenue emphasizes any request for information will be sent via U.S. Postal Service. They will not call you or email you. However, if they do request information from you, they will not be sending out your tax refund until you respond.

If you have any question about whether or not the request for information is legit - call the IRS before releasing sensitive information such as a driver's license or your W-2s.

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