Ken Berry writes:
As part of its ongoing efforts to deter identity theft, the Internal Revenue Service has issued final regulations on use of truncated Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs). The new regulations, which apply to those who furnish and receive payee statements and tax-related documents, generally follow proposed regulations issued last year, albeit with some modifications.
Based on the final regulations, a truncated TIN may be used in lieu of the taxpayer’s Social Security number (SSN), Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), Adoption Taxpayer Identification number (ATIN) or Employer Identification Number (EIN) on certain documents. With a truncated TIN, only the last four digits of the identifying number are displayed. The other numbers are replaced with asterisks or Xs.
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