{"id":22077,"date":"2017-03-27T16:45:26","date_gmt":"2017-03-27T16:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/hr-block-to-host-free-shred-events-across-the-nation\/"},"modified":"2023-03-01T13:43:07","modified_gmt":"2023-03-01T19:43:07","slug":"shredding-events-hosted-across-the-nation","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/irs\/tax-responsibilities\/shredding-events-hosted-across-the-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"H&R Block to host free shred events across the nation"},"content":{"rendered":"

When to shred, discard or keep financial documents<\/h2>\n

Three million Americans annually report tax identity theft and the IRS has paid out an estimated $5 billion in fraudulent returns for a single year. While cyber attacks pose a major threat, not all attackers are found online. They can sift through trash and recycling bins to hunt for personal information like a name, address and Social Security number and use what they\u2019ve found to file fraudulent tax returns. To help prevent this personal information getting into the wrong hands, H&R Block (NYSE: HRB) will host a free shredding event on April 1, 2017 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. local time at more than 130 offices nationwide<\/a>. H&R Block also offers advice on which documents to keep and for how long.<\/p>\n

\u201cTax and other financial documents contain some of your most important information. We are committed to protecting personal data ourselves and helping taxpayers protect their own information,\u201d said Karen Orosco, senior vice president of H&R Block U.S. Retail Sales and Service organization. \u201cThis shredding event is the perfect opportunity not only for taxpayers to safeguard their own information, but to learn best practices and other ways to protect themselves from tax identity theft.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taxpayers need to keep only a few documents indefinitely<\/h2>\n

During tax season, taxpayers often question what tax and financial documents they should shred, discard or keep.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe good news is that taxpayers usually need to keep only a few types of documents indefinitely,\u201d said Orosco. These can include records of business income and expenses for as long as you own the business, property sales that resulted in net-operating or capital losses and records of home improvements or other expenditures that establish basis in a home.<\/p>\n

Three years is often sufficient for most documents<\/h2>\n

Taxpayers should keep most of their tax-related documents for at least three years. Three years from the return due date is generally the timeframe a tax return is open for review and a taxpayer could need to substantiate information on the tax return. This kind of information may include:<\/p>\n