How to Tell If Your Census Letter Is Real or a Scam

A real Census Bureau letter arrives in an envelope with “U.S. Census Bureau” or “U.S. Department of Commerce” in the return address, almost always mailed from Jeffersonville, Indiana, and it points you to a website ending in “.gov.” To tell if a census letter is real, check those markers first, then confirm the named survey on the Bureau’s verification page at census.gov/surveyhelp. If the letter asks for your Social Security number, bank account, credit card, a payment, or your mother’s maiden name, or if it threatens you with jail, it is not from the Census Bureau.¹

The Markers on a Real Census Letter

Every piece of official Census Bureau mail carries the same visual signatures. The return address reads “U.S. Census Bureau” or “U.S. Department of Commerce.” The mailing origin is usually Jeffersonville, Indiana, where the Bureau runs its National Processing Center for printing and mailing survey forms.² Any web address printed in the letter ends in “.gov,” the domain reserved for U.S. government organizations. The same rule applies if the letter references email: legitimate Census Bureau addresses use the @census.gov domain.¹

The letter should also identify a specific survey by name and include a Census ID or access code for responding online. The Bureau publishes a searchable list of every active survey on its verification page, covering the decennial census, the American Community Survey, the Current Population Survey, the American Housing Survey, and more. If the survey named on your letter appears on that list, the letter matches something the Bureau actually sends.¹

What the Census Bureau Never Asks For

Real census surveys collect demographic and housing data. The decennial census, for example, asks how many people live at your address, each person’s name, age, date of birth, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and relationship to whoever is filling out the form, and whether the home is owned or rented. Ongoing surveys go deeper into income, education, employment, and commuting, but none of them cross into your financial accounts.

The Census Bureau will never ask you for any of the following:

Your full Social Security number
Bank account or credit card numbers
Passwords or PINs
Money, donations, or any kind of payment
Your political party affiliation
Your mother’s maiden name

Any letter requesting these details is not from the Census Bureau. Scammers rely on official-sounding language to make you second-guess that rule, but no legitimate government survey needs your banking credentials.

Other Warning Signs in a Fake Letter

Beyond the request for financial information, fraudulent letters tend to share a few other tells.

Threats of jail time are one. Federal law does authorize a fine of up to $100 for refusing to respond to a mandatory census survey, and up to $500 for giving deliberately false answers, but the penalty is a fine, not imprisonment.³ A letter that warns you’ll be arrested is a scam.

Poor grammar, spelling errors, awkward phrasing, and inconsistent fonts are another. Official Census Bureau materials go through professional review before mailing. So are generic greetings: a real letter is tied to a specific address and includes a Census ID, so a vague “Dear Resident” paired with urgent demands should raise your suspicion.

Look at any URLs and email addresses printed in the letter. If a web address does not end in “.gov,” or an email address is not @census.gov, don’t use them. And check the return address itself. Legitimate census mail comes from Jeffersonville, Indiana, or occasionally from one of the six regional offices. A return address that matches no Census Bureau location is a warning sign.¹

One point worth flagging: the Census Bureau has tested and used QR codes in some survey mailings, including the Census Household Panel recruitment.⁴ A QR code on a letter is not by itself proof of a fake. The safer habit is to ignore the code, type census.gov into your browser directly, and look up the survey by name. That way a malicious code can’t redirect you to a spoofed site.

Why You Might Get Census Mail Between Decennial Years

One reason people suspect their letter is fake is timing. The big decennial count runs every ten years (2020, then 2030), so mail arriving in a random year in between can feel wrong. It usually isn’t. The Census Bureau runs dozens of surveys year-round, including the American Community Survey, which goes to a rotating sample of about 3.5 million addresses every year, and the monthly Current Population Survey. All of them appear on the Bureau’s survey verification page.¹ If the letter names a survey you’ve never heard of, check that list before assuming it’s fraudulent. Getting real census mail in a non-census year is normal.

How to Verify the Letter Yourself

If something about the letter feels off, don’t use any phone number or web address printed on the letter itself. That’s the number one rule. Scammers put their own contact information on their fakes, so calling the number in the letter just puts you back in touch with them.

Instead, go directly to the Census Bureau’s verification page at census.gov/surveyhelp and search for the survey by name. If you’d rather speak to someone, call the Census Bureau’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-923-8282 or 301-763-4636, read them the survey name and any ID number printed on your letter, and ask whether it’s a real mailing.⁵ If the survey checks out, respond through the .gov web address you looked up yourself, not any link from the letter.

If You Decide the Letter Is a Scam

Do not respond, do not call any number in the letter, and do not provide any personal information. Report it through any of these channels:

Federal Trade Commission: file a report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or call 877-382-4357.
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov, especially if the scam reached you by email or through an online form.⁶
The Census Bureau directly: forward scam emails to ois.fraud.reporting@census.gov before deleting them.⁷

Once you’ve reported it, shred the physical letter so your address and any printed details don’t circulate further.

If You Already Responded to a Fake Letter

If you handed over information before realizing the letter was fraudulent, act quickly. Place a fraud alert on your credit file by contacting any one of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion); the one you contact is required to notify the other two. If the scammer got your Social Security number, consider a credit freeze, which blocks new accounts from being opened in your name. File an identity theft report at IdentityTheft.gov, which generates a personalized recovery plan and the dispute letters you’ll need. Watch your bank and credit card statements closely for the next several months, and report any unauthorized charges to your financial institution right away.

1
United States Census Bureau. Verify a Census Bureau Survey, Mailing, or Contact
2
United States Census Bureau. National Processing Center (NPC)
3
GovInfo. 13 USC 221 – Refusal or Neglect To Answer Questions; False Answers
4
US Census Bureau. QR Codes in the Census Household Panel
5
United States Census Bureau. Contact Us
6
Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Home Page – Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
7
Federal Communications Commission. Keep Your Guard Up Against Census Imposters