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FACT BRIEF

Are Internal Revenue Service income taxes voluntary?

By Dana Ford
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NO

Filing a tax return and paying federal income taxes are not voluntary, contrary to a video in a social media post.

The claim that income taxes are voluntary has been around so long, and in so many different forms, that the IRS addresses it on its website.

First, there's the contention that filing a tax return is voluntary. The agency says: "The word 'voluntary,' as used ... in IRS publications, refers to our system of allowing taxpayers initially to determine the correct amount of tax and complete the appropriate returns, rather than have the government determine tax for them from the outset."

Second, there's the contention that paying federal income tax is voluntary. The agency says: "The requirement to pay taxes is not voluntary ... the Internal Revenue Code clearly imposes a tax on the taxable income of individuals, estates, and trusts."

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Internal Revenue Service The Truth About Frivolous Tax Arguments
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.