History Main / IntimidatingRevenueService

* There was the 1961 ComicBook/{{Superman}} story "Superman Owes a Billion Dollars" where the IRS notices that Superman hasn't paid taxes ever, so, long story short, the Man of Steel has to raise a billion dollars fast, or else he will be arrested. Or something (it's hard to tell, he is ''Superman'', for crying out loud). Before you ask, Superman's income comes from the rewards on the criminals he catches and the diamonds he makes when he crushes coal in his hands. He donates everything to charity, though. The story ends with the taxman's superior saying that since Superman has dedicated his life to helping the population of Earth, he can literally claim ''billions'' of dependents and thus any tax obligations are then effectively canceled. Presumably he only claims the ones who don't pay US taxes (as otherwise no-one could claim the standard deduction that requires one not be someone's dependent). In addition, his dependents deduction would be limited on a billion dollar adjusted gross income. This story was a RecycledScript of an earlier 1957 Superman story, "Superman's Billion Dollar Debt". Yes, DC had the Man of Steel face the IRS twice.

* In an episode of ''Series/GreenAcres'', it's revealed that none of the residents of Hooterville and the surrounding area (other than Sam Drucker and the Douglasses) have ever paid income tax. Due to the combination of a computer error and a misunderstanding of how tax refunds work on the part of [[CountryMouse the farmers]], they all end up getting huge refunds in the five-figure range (keep in mind this was the [[TheSixties late '60s]]), leading to an investigation for tax fraud by the IRS.

:: The story was based on a [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'' story (and is almost an exact adaptation).

* In ''Film/Apollo13'', during the astronauts' broadcast from deep space, pilot Jack Swigert casually mentions that he forgot to file his taxes before the April 15th deadline. Sy Liebergott comments, "That's no joke, they'll jump on him!" (Later in the film, well into the in-flight emergency, they tell him he got an extension to file his taxes because he was "most definitely out of the country.")

* Renon from ''VideoGame/{{Castlevania 64}}'' starts out as a demon ''shopkeeper''; you can use his contract to summon him if you should happen to find it lying around, and purchase any supplies you need. Just before the final boss, he shows up to let you know you won't see him ever again, but how the story plays out depends on your spending habits; if you were thrifty, he tells you a war is brewing elsewhere, which will give better profit margins than selling chicken drumsticks to a single adventurer. If you spent more than 30000 gold, he reveals that there was some fine print in the contract that Carrie ([[LoopholeAbuse could not read because it was written in a demonic language]]); specifically, there's a tax on his services that he has to collect now, and that tax is '''''her soul!''''' Cue fighting for your very life.

* Averted in ComicBook/{{Lobo}} "Death and Taxes". He solves the problem with violence as usual.
* ''ComicBook/AntMan'': In an issue of ''ComicBook/TheAstonishingAntMan'', a group of veteran villains tell the new Magician that he's going to need a good accountant if he's gonna be a supervillain. Hijacker even says the only thing scarier than [[Characters/MarvelComicsFrankCastle The Punisher]] is the IRS.

* Mostly averted in ''Film/DinnerForSchmucks''. Though Therman Murch intimidates Barry with his "mind control powers," [[spoiler:and the fact that Barry's wife left him for Therman]], virtually everyone else in the film views him as a CloudCuckooLander.

* At the end of the tax year the IRS office sent an inspector to audit the books of a synagogue. While he was checking the books he turned to the rabbi and said, "I notice you buy a lot of candles. What do you do with the candle drippings?" "Good question," noted the rabbi. "We save them up and send them back to the candle makers, and every few years they send us a free box of candles."[[note]]Synagogues ''do'' use candles on the Sabbath and certain holy days. Consumption is nowhere near the level of churches, but it's there.[[/note]] "Oh," replied the auditor, somewhat disappointed that his unusual question had a practical answer. But on he went, in his obnoxious way: "What about all these matzo purchases around Passover? What do you do with the crumbs?" "Ah, yes," replied the rabbi, realizing that the inspector was trying to trap him with an unanswerable question. Deciding to be a smartass about it, he continued, "We collect them and send them back to the manufacturer, and every few years they send us a free box of matzos." "I see," replied the auditor, thinking hard about how he could fluster the know-it-all rabbi. "Well, Rabbi," he went on, "what do you do with all the leftover foreskins from the circumcisions you perform?" "Here, too, we do not waste," answered the Rabbi."What we do is save all the foreskins and send them to the tax office, and about once a year they send us a complete dick."

** In season four, "The Gone Fishing Job," the villains invoke this trope and its worst aspects by pretending to be IRS agents and steal money from delinquent people but who might be on a payment plan. The episode opens with the villain confronting the woman and daughter at night at her home and threatening her with eviction all in a formal-but-borde tone, scaring her into giving him a credit card. The money stolen [[spoiler:is being sent to fund an anti-government militia]].

* Music/TheBeatles' song "Taxman," although it's about British taxes instead of U.S. taxes, is all about this trope.

* In 1991, Wrestling/{{WWE}} brought back Wrestling/MikeRotunda from Wrestling/{{WCW}} and repackaged him into Irwin R. Schyster, or [[FunWithAcronyms IRS]], the evil wrestling taxman. He wrestled in suspenders, long pants, glasses and a long-sleeved shirt. He appeared in vignettes where he offered "Tax Tips," explaining what people could and could not write off, although he usually accused everybody, particularly his opponents, of being tax cheats. His [[FinishingMove finishing moves]] included the "Write-Off" (a flying lariat, or clothesline), and the "Penalty" (STF, short for "Stepover Toehold with Facelock.") In early 1992, he formed a TagTeam with [[Wrestling/TedDiBiase "The Million-Dollar Man" Ted [=DiBiase=]]] that, after they defeated [[Wrestling/TheRoadWarriors The Legion of Doom]] for the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Titles]], would be named "Money Inc." Rotunda continued the role following [=DiBiase=]'s retirement in 1993 until he returned to Wrestling/{{WCW}} in September 1995. He brought it back a few times since [=WWE=] hired him as a road agent (he retired in 2004), including in the 15th Anniversary ''[[Wrestling/WWERaw Raw]]'' battle royal on the December 15, 2007 episode. IRS won the match, but [=DiBiase=] walked out and offered IRS a briefcase of money; IRS accepted and eliminated himself, giving [=DiBiase=] the win.

* WesternAnimation/{{Harley Quinn|2019}} inverts the above example by having the Joker [[PresidentEvil successfully become mayor of Gotham]], upon which he has [[Characters/BatmanTheCharacter Bruce Wayne]] arrested for tax evasion. He willingly submits to it in order to show the public that nobody's above the law.
* In ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' this is almost [[RunningGag a running joke]]. In one episode a doctor (Bertrand in disguise) convinces all the parents, including the Fentons, to let him take their kids to an abandoned hospital by threatening to audit their taxes. The Guys In White pull much the same thing later on.

** It isn't just boxers-many professional athletes in general can owe millions in back taxes as one of many financial problems (often leading to bankruptcy) despite making millions of dollars annually. The reasons behind them are as various as the problems and eventual fates-see ''Broke'', an ESPN ''30 for 30'' documentary on the subject.

* ''Film/{{Kidco}}'': arguably the biggest villain in the movie, as they were originally going after the father before Peterjohn convinced them to go after the Cessna kids instead. Thanks to the iRS the movie's ending was not entirely happy.

** This is becoming more and more SOP for police investigations of notorious and/or leading criminals with a lot of conspicuous consumption-the police invite the IRS to look over the suspect's holdings to see if they owe any back taxes. The IRS is only too happy to insist that criminals pay taxes on their ill-gotten gains (as Capone learned the hard way)--the only thing they ''can't'' require is disclosure of the income source (as that would run afoul of the Fifth Amendment prohibition on self-incrimination). Invariably, many criminals ''haven't'' paid their taxes, and the IRS will gladly seize any and all of their assets for payment of the back taxes and the associated penalties.

A few times, the "intimidating" part is literal: the IRS agent is a [[ObviouslyEvil highly antagonistic]] EvilDebtCollector who is itching at the possibility of sentencing the protagonist to fifty years hard labor in [[HellholePrison Leavenworth]] (or [[MurderIsTheBestSolution the chair]]) and [[RidiculousRepossession seizing literally everything the protagonist has]] for the crime of owing Uncle Sam ([[ItsAllAboutMe and the IRS agent]]) [[DisproportionateRetribution ten cents]]. Or to avoid having [[HypocriticalHumor to sign a check]] to [[DebtDetester pay the protagonist back said ten cents]].

A few times, the "intimidating" part is literal: the IRS agent is a [[ObviouslyEvil highly antagonistic]] EvilDebtCollector who is itching at the possibility of sentencing the protagonist to fifty years hard labor in [[HellholePrison Leavenworth]] (or [[MurderIsTheBestSolution the chair]]) and [[RidiculousRepossession taking literally everything the protagonist has]] for the crime of owing Uncle Sam ([[ItsAllAboutMe and the IRS agent]]) [[DisproportionateRetribution ten cents]]. Or to avoid having [[HypocriticalHumor to sign a check]] to [[DebtDetester pay the protagonist back said ten cents]].

A few times, the "intimidating" part is literal: the IRS agent is a [[ObviouslyEvil highly antagonistic]] EvilDebtCollector who is itching at the possibility of sentencing the protagonist to fifty years hard labor in [[HellholePrison Leavenworth]] (or [[MurderIsTheBestSolution the chair]]) for the crime of owing Uncle Sam ([[ItsAllAboutMe and the IRS agent]]) [[DisproportionateRetribution ten cents]]. Or to avoid having [[HypocriticalHumor to sign a check]] to [[DebtDetester pay the protagonist back said ten cents]].

** One issue has ComicBook/TheAvengers make a bargain with the tax man to waive their back taxes (mostly Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}'s, who has never paid taxes in his life) in return for rounding up tax dodgers and making ''them'' pay their taxes.

* An issue of "What The-?" (a late 80s/early 90s Marvel parody comic) showcased "Woofeream", a humorous take on ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}. The hero is engaged in a Danger Room scenario, and easily dodges various hazards like machine gun fire, rockets, flamethrowers, and even a lurking [[TheGrimReaper Grim Reaper]]. But all his mocking bravado quickly evaporates when he comes across an IRS rep, who says he's there to audit all of his returns for the past ten years. "Woofeream" is initially terrified, until he realizes that as a Canadian citizen, he wouldn't ''owe'' any money to the US of A, and promptly eviscerates the rep.

* Believe it or not, the IRS has [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hh_C_geyrMI a detailed plan]] to keep collecting taxes [[{{Determinator}} even after a doomsday scenario]] like the aftermath of WorldWarIII. No wonder [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]] is scared of these guys when they're willing to go this far to enforce TheThreeCertaintiesInLife; death, taxes, [[BreadEggsAndBreadedEggs and death if you don't]] ''[[BreadEggsAndBreadedEggs pay]]'' [[BreadEggsAndBreadedEggs your taxes]].

** Another factor is that the IRS (along with the Secret Service, which was originally created to deal with counterfeiting crimes and still does to this day) are some of the most successful law enforcement agencies in the United States (most Federal level law enforcement agencies are ridiculously successful). In fact, the reason the Secret Service has its most famous job of Presidential Protection is because they were ridiculously good compared to other federal agencies when they were looking for the agency for the task. The US government puts a lot of investment into making sure it isn't getting cheated out of its money... except by people wealthy enough to be writing the laws.

* Believe it or not, the IRS has [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hh_C_geyrMI a detailed plan]] to keep collecting taxes [[{{Determinator}} even after a doomsday scenario]] like the aftermath of WorldWarIII. No wonder [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]] is scared of these guys when they're willing to go this far to enforce TheThreeCertaintiesInLife; death, taxes, and death if you don't ''pay'' your taxes.

* In an issue of ''The Astonishing Comicbook/AntMan'', a group of veteran villains tell the new Magician that he's going to need a good accountant if he's gonna be a supervillain. Hijacker even says the only thing scarier than Characters/{{The Punisher|FrankCastle}} is the IRS.

** One issue has Comicbook/TheAvengers make a bargain with the tax man to waive their back taxes (mostly Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}'s, who has never paid taxes in his life) in return for rounding up tax dodgers and making ''them'' pay their taxes.

* The secondary plotline of an ''Comicbook/AchilleTalon'' album deals with a tax man showing up at his door for an audit of the last five years. Cue Achille's ''father'' with boxes and boxes of receipts, opening discussions upfront with an "iron clad case that those ballpoint pens were a legitimate business expense" and tipping off the tax man that he [[OhCrap may be in over his head.]] By the end of the album, Achille's father is sitting on a ''mountain'' of receipts, the tax man is crying his surrender and they've barely gone through ''the first morning's expenses for the five year period being audited.''

* An issue of "What The-?" (a late 80s/early 90s Marvel parody comic) showcased "Woofeream", a humorous take on Comicbook/{{Wolverine}}. The hero is engaged in a Danger Room scenario, and easily dodges various hazards like machine gun fire, rockets, flamethrowers, and even a lurking [[TheGrimReaper Grim Reaper]]. But all his mocking bravado quickly evaporates when he comes across an IRS rep, who says he's there to audit all of his returns for the past ten years. "Woofeream" is initially terrified, until he realizes that as a Canadian citizen, he wouldn't ''owe'' any money to the US of A, and promptly eviscerates the rep.

--> '''Betsy:''' But Joey's only seven years old! You can't take money from a child.
--> '''Harker:''' You know, Professor, your wife has a remarkable sense of humor. We don't run into it often in our line of work, and that's a fact.

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'' episode "The Man in the Bottle" depicts a couple who thanks to a genie get the chance to have four wishes granted. One of them is to get one million dollars. For a while they're rolling in it, but then an IRS agent shows up and confiscates 90% of it.

* One of [=DevilArtemis=]' "Cell Vs." videos features a conversation between Cell and Kermit where the former [[PersonOfMassDestruction (who can destroy planets, mind you)]] relates that he refused the rights to his arena for the Cell Games to them from not paying his property taxes.
-->'''Kermit:''' Welp. It was nice knowing you, Cell.

* ''Series/{{Hunter}}'': Rick Hunter finds himself being audited by a visiting IRS accountant (played by Creator/JamesCromwell) who is quite annoyed by Hunter's habit of paying police informants out of his own pocket and falsely declaring it as business expenses. DaChief is initially amused by this, but quickly becomes a target of the accountant himself.

A few times, the "intimidating" part is literal: the IRS agent is a [[ObviouslyEvil highly antagonistic]] EvilDebtCollector who is itching at the possibility of sentencing the protagonist to fifty years hard labor in [[HellholePrison Leavenworth]] (or [[MurderIsTheBestSolution the chair]]) for the crime of owing Uncle Sam ([[ItsAllAboutMe and the IRS agent]]) [[DisproportionateRetribution ten cents]]. Or [[HypocriticalHumor to sign a check]] to [[DebtDetester pay the protagonist back said ten cents]].

* In an episode of ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun'' the Solomons discover that they have to pay taxes after three years of blissful ignorance. After a funny attempt to commit fraud on their tax declaration, they get audited and get paranoid about the IRS blowing the {{Masquerade}}.

* ''LetsPlay/LifeSMP'': {{Discussed|Trope}} in Season 2, ''Last Life SMP'', where [=LDShadowLady=] tames three wolves on Day 1 and names them after things that scare people -- "Dragon", "Ogre", and "[[OddNameOut Taxes]]".

* ''Film/GrumpyOldMen'': John Gustafson's house about to be foreclosed by the IRS for back taxes.

* ''Literature/GoodOmens'': Aziraphale is an angel, so naturally he pays his taxes in a lawful and timely manner. As a result, he's been audited five times, because such law-abiding behavior is deeply suspicious, though they get no further than the people who come in and make loud remarks on how ''flammable'' books are and it'd be such a ShameIfSomethingHappened.

* There was the 1961 Franchise/{{Superman}} story "Superman Owes a Billion Dollars" where the IRS notices that Superman hasn't paid taxes ever, so, long story short, the Man of Steel has to raise a billion dollars fast, or else he will be arrested. Or something (it's hard to tell, he is ''Superman'', for crying out loud). Before you ask, Superman's income comes from the rewards on the criminals he catches and the diamonds he makes when he crushes coal in his hands. He donates everything to charity, though. The story ends with the taxman's superior saying that since Superman has dedicated his life to helping the population of Earth, he can literally claim ''billions'' of dependents and thus any tax obligations are then effectively canceled. Presumably he only claims the ones who don't pay US taxes (as otherwise no-one could claim the standard deduction that requires one not be someone's dependent). In addition, his dependents deduction would be limited on a billion dollar adjusted gross income. This story was a RecycledScript of an earlier 1957 Superman story, "Superman's Billion Dollar Debt". Yes, DC had the Man of Steel face the IRS twice.

* In an issue of ''The Astonishing Comicbook/AntMan'', a group of veteran villains tell the new Magician that he's going to need a good accountant if he's gonna be a supervillain. Hijacker even says the only thing scarier than Comicbook/ThePunisher is the IRS.

* The secondary plotline of a ''Comicbook/AchilleTalon'' album deals with a tax man showing up at his door for an audit of the last five years. Cue Achille's ''father'' with boxes and boxes of receipts, opening discussions upfront with an "iron clad case that those ballpoint pens were a legitimate business expense" and tipping off the tax man that he [[OhCrap may be in over his head.]] By the end of the album, Achille's father is sitting on a ''mountain'' of receipts, the tax man is crying his surrender and they've barely gone through ''the first morning's expenses for the five year period being audited.''

* ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason and Marcus wear IRS t-shirts for Halloween one year. One of their neighbors has a heart attack.
** Of course, Roger being BumblingDad incarnate, they have good reason to fear the IRS. One year he assured Andy he wasn't going to do the taxes himself... [[WorseWithContext he was going to do them on the computer]]; in another he asks if it's even possible to file taxes in a legally-binding state of mind (as Andy asked, "Who is Roglp Fox?").

* Exaggerated in ''Film/EverythingEverywhereAllAtOnce''. Not only is the IRS threatening to foreclose on the Wang family's laundromat over filing errors, [[spoiler:an alternate version of their tax auditor is openly trying to kill them]]. It is eventually Deconstructed and then Subverted through the course of the movie, as the ornery attitude of the Wangs' auditor is shown to at least partially stem from [[spoiler:personal pessimism about having zero luck in finding personal companionship]] and near the end [[spoiler:in the universe where she arrives with the police to foreclose on their laundromat and finds out they're going through divorce proceedings she calls off the foreclosure and gives them additional time to sort their affairs, as ultimately the IRS' job is not to punish people but to make sure the appropriate tax payments are made.]]

* Used in Creator/EstherFriesner's ''Literature/ElfDefense'' (wherein an elven king who will not quit pursuing his mortal once-lover is served with divorce papers). The fight...gets kind of nasty. Siccing the IRS on him for back taxes owed from his profits as a [[ElvishPresley small-time rock star]] is when he finally gives up [[spoiler:playing nice and gets serious.]]

** A variation comes when Skyler panics that Ted is being audited by the IRS and is exasperated at his inability to process that he is facing a prison sentence for cooking his books. However, it's not the tax fraud itself she's worried about; the IRS' extremely high success rates at prosecution are because they have the power to audit and put surveillance on any people who might be connected to the fraud, and even a brief look at her will quickly reveal that she's laundering money, which will lead to ''much'' more serious charges than tax fraud when her husband's drug empire gets unearthed. [[spoiler:To save herself from an audit, she plays up a DumbBlonde persona to convince the inspector that the irregularities are incompetence rather than fraud, and then sends a couple of thugs to intimidate her ex-boss into letting her pay his fine with her husband's money]].

* In 1991, Wrestling/{{WWE}} brought back Wrestling/MikeRotunda from Wrestling/{{WCW}} and repackaged him into Irwin R. Schyster, or [[FunWithAcronyms IRS]], the evil wrestling taxman. He wrestled in suspenders, long pants, glasses and a long-sleeved shirt. He appeared in vignettes where he offered "Tax Tips," explaining what people could and could not write off, although he usually accused everybody, particularly his opponents, of being tax cheats. His [[FinishingMove finishing moves]] included the "Write-Off" (a flying lariat, or clothesline), and the "Penalty" (STF, short for "Stepover Toehold with Facelock.") In early 1992, he formed a TagTeam with [[Wrestling/TedDiBiase "The Million-Dollar Man" Ted [=DiBiase=]]] that, after they defeated [[Wrestling/TheRoadWarriors The Legion Of Doom]] for the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwe-world-t.html WWE World Tag Team Titles]], would be named "Money Inc." Rotunda continued the role following [=DiBiase=]'s retirement in 1993 until he returned to Wrestling/{{WCW}} in September 1995. He brought it back a few times since [=WWE=] hired him as a road agent (he retired in 2004), including in the 15th Anniversary ''[[Wrestling/WWERaw Raw]]'' battle royal on the December 15, 2007 episode. IRS won the match, but [=DiBiase=] walked out and offered IRS a briefcase of money; IRS accepted and eliminated himself, giving [=DiBiase=] the win.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "[[Recap/TheNewBatmanAdventuresE7JokersMillions Joker's Millions]]", ComicBook/TheJoker inherits a small fortune from a rival gangster and lives a life of luxuries and general happiness until he receives a letter from the IRS demanding, well, taxes. Cue desperate attempts to raise the money to pay the IRS as a large chunk of the money was fake, as a final screw you from the dead gangster to the Joker, and he cannot just admit that to the government without becoming the laughingstock of the criminal world.

* ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn'' inverts the above example by having the Joker [[PresidentEvil successfully become mayor of Gotham]], upon which he has [[ComicBook/{{Batman}} Bruce Wayne]] arrested for tax evasion. He willingly submits to it in order to show the public that nobody's above the law.

** Also shamelessly mocked in its day, such as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZvJzPgIAQI here]].

* Taken [[ExaggeratedTrope Up to Eleven]] in the Roman Empire, where the authorities expected the tax collectors to supplement their official wages by cheating people and extorting more money from them than the law required. In conquered provinces, they were often natives to the area who were working with their conquerors, which meant they were also viewed as traitors. See the entry for the Bible under literature to see how popular this made them.

* Exaggerated in ''Film/EverythingEverywhereAllAtOnce''. Not only is the IRS threatening to foreclose on the Wang family's laundromat over filing errors, [[spoiler:an alternate version of their tax auditor is openly trying to kill them.]]