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Discover requiring access to tax returns?

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jrwa81
Regular Contributor

Discover requiring access to tax returns?

Hey everyone,

 

I have a question that I'm hoping someone can answer.  I was pre-approved for three different Discover cards tonight, so I selected the cash back card.  It then asked me to upload some documents to verify my identity (a recent bank statement and a copy of my SS card and photo ID), which I thought was a bit strange since no other credit card company has ever asked for any of this,  but I complied and uploaded them.  I then went on the Discover chat to ensure that they had received my documents.   The representative I chatted with went to check and then she came back a few minutes later and asked if I've filed tax returns in the past two years.  I said yes, of course I have.  She then said that they would be emailing me a link from Equifax in the next few days to allow them access to my tax returns.

 

Does this seem a bit strange to anyone else?  I've had many different credit cards over the past 22 years of my adult life and not a single one of them has ever asked for access to my IRS tax returns.  This just seems extremely intrusive to me.  I asked the representative why they needed this, but she either would not or could not give me an explanation and simply apologized for the "inconvenience."  I've never been a Discover customer before, so I'm completely clueless.  Is this the norm for them?  Can anyone explain to me why they would need access to my tax returns?  My goodness, I already provided them my last month's bank statement as well as a copy of my driver's license and social security card.  What else could they possibly need?  You'd think I was applying for a mortgage with everything they are asking for just for a simple credit card! 

Message 1 of 21
20 REPLIES 20
chiefone4u
Established Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?


@jrwa81 wrote:

Hey everyone,

 

I have a question that I'm hoping someone can answer.  I was pre-approved for three different Discover cards tonight, so I selected the cash back card.  It then asked me to upload some documents to verify my identity (a recent bank statement and a copy of my SS card and photo ID), which I thought was a bit strange since no other credit card company has ever asked for any of this,  but I complied and uploaded them.  I then went on the Discover chat to ensure that they had received my documents.   The representative I chatted with went to check and then she came back a few minutes later and asked if I've filed tax returns in the past two years.  I said yes, of course I have.  She then said that they would be emailing me a link from Equifax in the next few days to allow them access to my tax returns.

 

Does this seem a bit strange to anyone else?  I've had many different credit cards over the past 22 years of my adult life and not a single one of them has ever asked for access to my IRS tax returns.  This just seems extremely intrusive to me.  I asked the representative why they needed this, but she either would not or could not give me an explanation and simply apologized for the "inconvenience."  I've never been a Discover customer before, so I'm completely clueless.  Is this the norm for them?  Can anyone explain to me why they would need access to my tax returns?  My goodness, I already provided them my last month's bank statement as well as a copy of my driver's license and social security card.  What else could they possibly need?  You'd think I was applying for a mortgage with everything they are asking for just for a simple credit card! 


Something in your credit report and/or one of your answers on the application must have triggered a financial review.

 

Discover has been known to randomly ask card holders to turn over tax documents to prove income... my suspicion is they've been burned to many times from people who exaggerated their income. 

 

If you don't want to release your records, your application will be denied and/or account closed if they already approved it.

 

It's been mixed results for people who have allowed access to tax returns... on the internet it is hard to tell if honesty about income was the cause of adverse action.

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Message 2 of 21
CreditCuriosity
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

Yes they use 3rd party data sources and other things to verify said income among other things so something triggered it.  One such data source is the work number and many other exist.  As mentioned above it is up to you how you proceed.  If all adds up you are good to go.

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Message 3 of 21
SUPERSQUID
Valued Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

It sounds strange to me because this may i was approved by discover for all 3 cards and they didnt ask me for anything, nada.

there might be something on your credit report they need an answer to or maybe during the application you told them you were self employed. i know when i took unsecured loans in the past they wanted paystubs and utility bills.

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Message 4 of 21
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

I have been with Discover for decades. Then in February 2021 they asked me to fill out a 4506 which is what they requested of you. Copy of tax returns. I knew from being on here that they are asking it now for both new and existing customers. So I complied. It is going to be the new normal with Discover. Nothing I did triggered it. I was just selected so I did it. Was not a big deal for me and nothing changed with my two Discover cards.

Thanks

Mark

Message 5 of 21
AceTen
Regular Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

I would not give any card company permission to access my tax returns through the IRS via equifax.  That's ridiculous and quite differnt from asking for POI and they might even stay connected to it all the time. Beyond the overreach, I do not trust them to keep data safe as they have proved they cannot. I would not even give that access to the big banks I already have cards with... Chase, USbank, Navy Federal, TD Bank.  

 

Futhermore, equifax does not access the irs itself. There's another company they use to link the irs and grab the data, so now you have Discover, equifax, and some random 3rd party app with total acess to all your info on the IRS, to check, probably at any time, and continuously. 

 

Sorry for the derail, but just a warning for those reading along. Discover, and capital one, will sue people who default on unsecured debt and then garnish wages or force people to sell their house if they win a judgement. Of course that is their right, but in my opinion Discover and Capital one prey on people with low scores, no credit, or bad credit by giving limits and credit that is hard to manage for those new to credit or with shaky finances. Then they will sue and crush those people they groomed for failure.  That's their business model. So I bet they are using all that personal data for lots of reasons, and will use it as a weapon if needed. 

"Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken."
Message 6 of 21
GApeachy
Super Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

*OP, did Discover do a hp?  Were you approved?  Also, have you received the link to the 4506-T?  

 

Usually, or what I've read here that's happened to some mf peeps in the past, Discover would approve the applicant only then to lock the card/account access/send an email request for 4506-T and then (sometimes) when the recipient opens the email the phone will ring....guess who? Smiley Surprised..a Disco CSR....really creepy stuff Smiley Frustrated doing a followup on the tax form request.  Some mf peeps at that point have either complied or paid off their new card and closed it.

 

So that's why I'm asking the above questions.  Wondering if Disco has changed their approval process to requesting info. FIRST before opening and possibly closing a new tl in one fell swoop.  

 

If none of the above *questions* have happened then go ahead and lock/freeze your cr's again and move on if you're not interested in fooling with it.

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Message 7 of 21
CreditCuriosity
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?


@AceTen wrote:

I would not give any card company permission to access my tax returns through the IRS via equifax.  That's ridiculous and quite differnt from asking for POI and they might even stay connected to it all the time. Beyond the overreach, I do not trust them to keep data safe as they have proved they cannot. I would not even give that access to the big banks I already have cards with... Chase, USbank, Navy Federal, TD Bank.  

 

Futhermore, equifax does not access the irs itself. There's another company they use to link the irs and grab the data, so now you have Discover, equifax, and some random 3rd party app with total acess to all your info on the IRS, to check, probably at any time, and continuously. 

 

Sorry for the derail, but just a warning for those reading along. Discover, and capital one, will sue people who default on unsecured debt and then garnish wages or force people to sell their house if they win a judgement. Of course that is their right, but in my opinion Discover and Capital one prey on people with low scores, no credit, or bad credit by giving limits and credit that is hard to manage for those new to credit or with shaky finances. Then they will sue and crush those people they groomed for failure.  That's their business model. So I bet they are using all that personal data for lots of reasons, and will use it as a weapon if needed. 


Not just Discover and Cap1 will sue/garnish your wages, most lenders will as they are a business as well and need to make money vs. having people defaulting on them and costing their shareholders money.  Does Cap1/Discover cater to both sub/prime markets, yes as do other lenders you mentioned above just maybe a bit more,  but all of them will sue for losses based on various scenarios.  As you stated though this is vearing off topic thoughand not the purpose of this discussion.

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Message 8 of 21
coldfusion
Community Leader
Mega Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?


@GApeachy wrote:

*OP, did Discover do a hp?  Were you approved?  Also, have you received the link to the 4506-T?  

 

Usually, or what I've read here that's happened to some mf peeps in the past, Discover would approve the applicant only then to lock the card/account access/send an email request for 4506-T and then (sometimes) when the recipient opens the email the phone will ring....guess who? Smiley Surprised..a Disco CSR....really creepy stuff Smiley Frustrated doing a followup on the tax form request.  Some mf peeps at that point have either complied or paid off their new card and closed it.

 

So that's why I'm asking the above questions.  Wondering if Disco has changed their approval process to requesting info. FIRST before opening and possibly closing a new tl in one fell swoop.  

 

If none of the above *questions* have happened then go ahead and lock/freeze your cr's again and move on if you're not interested in fooling with it.


As an aside, the 4506-C is now the form used to request release of federal tax returns.  There was a short transitional period where both form types were accepted but that ended 5-6 months ago when the IRS completed the cutover to an updated process.

 

The updated process (supposedly) tightens up the requirements to be allowed to request tax data from the IRS and uses the 4506-C.  The old approval process was retired, and along with that the 4506-T was also retired from use.  The 2 forms themselves were functionally equivalent and serve the same purpose.

 

"What is this 4506-C request? I keep reading on the forum about 4506-T requests"

 

 

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Message 9 of 21
jrwa81
Regular Contributor

Re: Discover requiring access to tax returns?

I appreciate all of the feedback!  Yes, they did do a hard pull on me last night on all three bureaus.  When I filled out their prequalification form, it said that I was pre-apprpoved for three cards (the cash back card, the miles card, and the restaurant/gas card), so I selected the cash back card and that's when it asked me to upload a recent bank statement, my photo ID, and SS card, which I did do.  Then, I was told by a representative on their chat that they would be sending me a link via Equifax to allow them access to my last two years of tax returns.  I am VERY wary about this.   It seems extremely sketchy to me.  I've never had any card issuer request this before, so it just weirds me out a bit. 

 

However, I did go back on the chat this morning because I had received an email from Discover saying that they needed more information from me, but the guy that I chatted with this time told me that they had everything they needed and that I should have an answer within the next 24 hours, so I have absolutely NO idea what is going on.  I haven't received any emails requesting access to my tax returns or anything else.  I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens!  If they do end up requesting access to my taxes, I probably won't do it.  With all of these data breaches lately and just the overall bad feeling it gives me, it just doesn't really seem worth it.  I feel that I've provided them with more than sufficient information to be able to verify and approve me (my bank statement, photo ID, etc.).

Message 10 of 21
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