PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Mar 21, 2018
Taxpayer ID Protection and Fraud Prevention Act
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish or modify various requirements related to protecting taxpayer identities and filing tax returns electronically.
The bill requires:
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
tax refunds for electronically filed returns to be made by electronic funds transfer with certain exceptions;
the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), to the maximum extent practicable, to allow income tax refunds to be made by electronic funds transfer to prepaid debit cards, Direct Express cards, digital wallets, and other secure electronic payment methods;
the IRS to report to Congress annually on improper payments made by the IRS;
the IRS to work collaboratively with the public and private sectors to protect taxpayers from identity theft refund fraud; and
the Department of the Treasury to ensure that the Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee studies (including by providing organized public forums) and makes recommendations to Treasury regarding methods to prevent identity theft refund fraud.
The bill also:
decreases from 250 to 25 the minimum number of tax returns a taxpayer must be required to file during the year to allow the IRS to require electronic filing, and
changes the earliest date on which credits or refunds may be made for the child tax credit or the earned income tax credit to the 1st day of the third month (currently the 15th day of the second month) following the close of the taxable year.
People & committees
Rep. Bishop, Mike [R-MI-8] · R–MI
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
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No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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Analyze H.R.5368 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
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