Bureau of the Fiscal Service (2024)

FAQs

Why am I getting a letter from the US Department of Treasury Bureau of Fiscal Service? ›

The Bureau of the Fiscal Service in the Department of the Treasury collects overdue (delinquent) nontax debt for other federal agencies. If you owe money to a federal agency and you did not pay it on time, you have a delinquent debt. You will receive a letter first from the agency to whom you owe the debt.

The Bureau of the Fiscal Service (BFS), which is part of the Treasury Department, initiates refund offsets to outstanding federal agency debts or child support, state income tax obligations and unemployment compensation debts. These offsets are referred to as Treasury Offset Program (TOP) offsets.

On October 7, 2012, Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner issued Treasury Order 136-01 creating the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, consolidating the operations of the Bureau of the Public Debt and the Financial Management Service.

National Financial Critical Infrastructure – The bureau is responsible for key government resources essential to the operation of the economy and government, including disbursing federal payments, revenue collections, cash reporting, and financing.

If you do not pay the agency, the debt then goes to Treasury and we send you a letter about that debt. The letter tells you what agency you owe money to, how much you owe, and how you can pay.

Advising on domestic and international financial, monetary, economic, trade and tax policy; Enforcing Federal finance and tax laws; Investigating and prosecuting tax evaders, counterfeiters, and forgers.

The IRS is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury and one of the world's most efficient tax administrators. In fiscal year 2020, the IRS collected almost $3.5 trillion in revenue and processed more than 240 million tax returns. The IRS spent just 35 cents for each $100 it collected in FY 2020.

Principal functions are as follows: Establish appropriate fiscal policies to carry out the state's programs. Prepare, explain, and administer the state's annual financial plan (budget), which the Governor is required under the State Constitution to present by January 10 of each year.

Visit the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration's (CDTFA) website, email the CDTFA, find a local office, or view their directory. Customer service phone numbers: Toll free number: 1-800-400-7115. TDD service from TDD phones: 1-800-735-2929.

All or part of your refund may be offset to pay off past-due federal tax, state income tax, state unemployment compensation debts, child support, spousal support, or other federal nontax debts, such as student loans.

Can BFS take your whole refund? ›

The BFS can seize some or all of your refund if you owe federal or state back taxes. It also can seize your refund if you default on child support or student loan debts. Owing your state unemployment compensation can trigger a refund offset. You can contact the BFS and IRS if you think a mistake has been made.

If you owe money to a federal or state agency, the federal government may use part or all of your federal tax refund to repay the debt. This is called a tax refund offset. If your tax refund is lower than you calculated, it may be due to a tax refund offset for an unpaid debt such as child support.

Most IRS letters and notices are about federal tax returns or tax accounts. Each notice deals with a specific issue and includes any steps the taxpayer needs to take. A notice may reference changes to a taxpayer's account, taxes owed, a payment request or a specific issue on a tax return.

Contacts for the Public

To obtain information on whether your tax refund or federal payment was reduced or offset, you can call 800-304-3107 and select option 1 to hear an automated message of the amount, date and creditor agency or agencies you owe the debt to.

It is possible that for some reason your payment didn't get applied correctly, and the IRS computer automatically sent it back to you in a check. If that happened it's better to call the IRS before cashing the check; they might want you to void it instead.

If you received a check or EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) payment from Treasury and don't know why it was sent to you, the Bureau of the Fiscal Service Call Center can help. The Bureau of the Fiscal Service Call Center can be reached by calling 1-855-868-0151, Option 2.