Maine Revenue Services (“MRS”) has implemented new security measures to help reduce tax fraud related to identity theft and fraudulent refund requests. If MRS detects a potential fraudulent return using a taxpayer’s identity, MRS will mail the taxpayer at issue an Identity Verification Request Notice (“Notice”) to confirm that the taxpayer requested the refund. The Notice will direct the taxpayer to log in to the Maine Tax Portal (“MTP”), available at revenue.maine.gov, to verify their identity within 30 days from the Notice date. Any refund request at issue will be suspended until the taxpayer has successfully completed the identity verification process and MRS has completed processing of the tax return. Verified refunds are generally issued approximately 2-4 weeks after the taxpayer response is submitted. If you do not have internet access, the Notice will advise taxpayers to call (207) 626-8475, option 5, Monday through Friday between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and noon, except holidays.

Visit: Following Appeal from Mills Administration, IRS Exempts $450 Winter Energy Relief Payment from Federal Taxes | Office of Governor Janet T. Mills (maine.gov) Following Appeal from Mills Administration, IRS Exempts $450 Winter Energy Relief Payment from Federal Taxes December 15, 2023 IRS responded to Commissioner Figueroa's recent letter correcting their decision and confirming energy relief payments will not be subject to Federal taxation. In response to an appeal from the Mills Administration, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Maine's $450 Winter Energy Relief Payments will not be subject to federal tax. In a letter sent to Commissioner Kirsten Figueroa of the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, the IRS Acting General Counsel wrote, "the payments do qualify for the exclusion from income for qualified disaster relief payments under Internal Revenue Code section 139(b)(4)." The decision to not Federally tax the payments comes in response to pressure from the Mills Administration. DAFS Commissioner Figueroa objected in a letter (PDF) to the IRS's verbal ruling and urged the IRS to not tax the payments. "We are thankful to the IRS for arriving at the right decision and for their prompt response as Maine taxpayers prepare for the upcoming tax season," said Governor Mills and Commissioner Figueroa in a joint statement. "These payments were intended to provide financial relief to Maine people dealing with high energy prices, and we're glad that money will stay in their pockets where it belongs."