To protect the personal information of Virginia taxpayers who have been identified as potential victims of identity theft, the Virginia Department of Taxation is providing these individuals with personal identification numbers (PINs) to use when filing their Virginia individual income tax returns in 2016. 

We are sending PINs to affected taxpayers in personalized letters through the U.S. mail in early December. Because some of these taxpayers may be your clients, you should be aware of the following information: 

• You should ask all clients if they have been issued PINs from the Virginia Department of Taxation. These PINS are different than the IP PIN issued by the IRS or an electronic filing PIN. The PINs are not interchangeable. 
• The PIN, in combination with the taxpayer’s Social Security number, serves as a unique identifier. Use the PIN on any individual income tax returns filed in 2016, including amended and prior year returns.
• If you use tax software to prepare returns, you will be prompted to enter the PIN. If you use Virginia’s fillable form, enter the PIN in the Office Use box. If you file a paper return, enter the PIN on page 2 in the Office Use box.
• If you are preparing a joint tax return and each spouse was issued a PIN, only one PIN needs to be provided on the return. Either of the spouse’s PINs will be acceptable. 
• If the PIN is not provided on the return, processing of the return may be delayed. 
• If a taxpayer forgets his or her PIN or loses the letter, he or she will need to call our Customer Contact Center at (804) 367-8031 to request a new PIN which will be provided by mail. Only the taxpayer or a representative who has a valid power of attorney (POA) from the taxpayer can request a replacement PIN. A tax preparer without a valid POA cannot request a replacement PIN. All replacement PINs will be mailed to taxpayers.
• The PIN will be valid for one calendar year. New PINs will be issued in November or December each year. 
• You should remind your clients not to share their PINs with anyone, except a tax professional filing their returns. 

Only those taxpayers whom we have identified as victims of identity theft are eligible to receive PINs. At this time, we don’t have a process for other taxpayers to request PINs. We may consider expanding this effort during the 2017 individual income tax filing season.