How the IRS caught 1.3 million fake kids in 1987

Name: How the IRS caught 1.3 million fake kids in 1987
Uploaded: 2026-08-06T19:16:54.094Z
Duration: 58 s
Description: When the IRS required Social Security numbers for dependents in 1987, 1.3 million made-up children vanished from tax returns.

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Before 1987, you only needed a name to claim a child on your taxes — no Social Security number required. TJ explains how one simple rule change exposed over a million fake dependents and why similar issues are cropping up again today.

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