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Use the inspector general (OIG) for the federal agency that administered the money. For Small Business Administration (SBA) programs, file with the SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG) Hotline. For suspected Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance fraud, contact the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) OIG, and you can also notify FEMA’s fraud unit. For another federal relief or grant program, identify the responsible agency and use its OIG. Anonymous complaints are generally accepted, but providing a safe way to contact you makes follow-up easier.
Choose the right reporting channel first
The correct destination depends on which agency administered the benefit or lost the funds, and on whether you are reporting an administrative abuse, an active scam, identity theft, or a cybercrime. The table below puts the main routes side by side.
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| Situation | Primary channel | Other useful channel | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suspected fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, or misconduct involving an SBA program, personnel, operations, or federal funds | SBA OIG Hotline online complaint system | None required; keep your submission number for later supplements | SBA OIG reviews the allegation and may refer it for investigation, audit, inspection, evaluation, or another review |
| Suspected FEMA disaster-assistance fraud | DHS OIG online allegation form or 1-800-323-8603 | FEMA Fraud and Internal Investigation Division at [email protected]; DOJ National Center for Disaster Fraud for disaster-linked allegations | DHS OIG is the principal investigative channel for FEMA staff and program allegations |
| Fraud involving another federal grant, loan, or relief program | OIG of the agency that administered or lost the funds | Use the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) directory to identify that OIG | The agency OIG determines whether the matter belongs in an investigation, audit, inspection, evaluation, or referral |
| General fraud or a crime affecting you directly | Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) | Local police or sheriff when an immediate scam or theft is occurring | Law-enforcement reporting is appropriate when the conduct is not limited to an agency program issue |
| Cyber-enabled fraud | Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) | Also notify the relevant agency OIG when federal relief funds are involved | IC3 handles the cybercrime aspect; the program OIG handles the agency-funds aspect |
Do not wait to identify every detail before reporting. Submit what you can establish, label uncertainty clearly, and preserve records so investigators can ask focused follow-up questions.
How to report suspected SBA loan or grant fraud
Use the SBA OIG Hotline
The SBA OIG Hotline is the designated route for suspected fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, or misconduct involving SBA programs, operations, personnel, or federal funds. That includes allegations connected to SBA loans, grants, contracting, applications, or payments. Use the SBA OIG online complaint system and select the option that best describes the conduct.
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Prepare the complaint before opening the form
- Name the program. Identify the SBA loan, grant, or relief initiative involved. If you know the application, loan, or payment identifier, include it.
- Identify the people or entities. Give names, business names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, websites, or other identifiers you lawfully possess.
- Write a chronological narrative. State what happened, when and where it happened, how you learned of it, and why the conduct appears improper. Separate what you personally observed from information someone else provided.
- Estimate the money involved. Give an amount or range if you can support it. If you cannot calculate a loss, say that the amount is unknown rather than guessing.
- List witnesses and records. Include people who can confirm the events and describe the documents you can provide.
- Describe action already taken. Note whether you contacted the borrower, lender, agency, police, or another official and what response you received.
- Attach supporting material. Upload or identify lawfully obtained emails, applications, payment records, invoices, photographs, letters, or other corroborating documents.
Anonymous versus contactable reports
The SBA OIG Hotline allows an anonymous complaint. Anonymous reporting can protect your identity, but investigators cannot readily ask you to clarify a date, identify a document, or explain a transaction. If you want privacy while permitting follow-up, provide contact information and request confidentiality. Confidentiality generally means the OIG will not release your name without your consent unless disclosure is legally unavoidable.
Keep the SBA submission number
SBA issues a complaint submission number that can be used when you send supplemental information. Save it with your copy of the complaint and attachments. SBA says the Hotline does not provide case-status updates, so the number is for adding information rather than tracking an investigation.
How to report suspected FEMA disaster-assistance fraud
Start with DHS OIG
FEMA staff are required to report suspected fraud to the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General. For a member of the public, DHS OIG is the primary channel for allegations involving FEMA assistance. Submit an allegation through the DHS OIG online form or call 1-800-323-8603.
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Notify FEMA when the allegation concerns FEMA assistance
FEMA lists [email protected] for suspected fraud. You may use that address to alert FEMA’s Fraud and Internal Investigation Division, while sending the formal allegation to DHS OIG. FEMA also publishes a mailing address for the division if you need to send paper records; use the current address shown in FEMA’s official fraud guidance rather than relying on an old copy.
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Use the disaster-fraud route when appropriate
Allegations tied to a declared disaster can also be reported to the Department of Justice (DOJ) National Center for Disaster Fraud. This is an additional route, not a replacement for DHS OIG when the conduct concerns FEMA’s own program or personnel. If the matter is an immediate local scam, contact local police or the sheriff as appropriate.
Include the assistance details
State the disaster, date of application or inspection, applicant or contractor identity, address of the damaged property or project, payment or award information, and the specific statement or document you believe is false. Explain whether you are the applicant, a neighbor, a contractor, a caseworker, or another witness. Attach copies, not irreplaceable originals.
Reporting fraud in another federal relief or grant program
Find the agency that controlled the money
Look at the award notice, payment record, application portal, contract, or correspondence to identify the federal agency that administered the program. The agency that lost or disbursed the funds normally has the OIG with jurisdiction. DOJ explains that every federal agency has an inspector general whose duties include investigating fraud committed against that agency.
Use the CIGIE directory when the agency is unclear
The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency maintains a directory of federal OIG offices. Use it to locate the correct hotline after you identify the administering agency. If you accidentally submit to the wrong OIG, explain the program and agency in your complaint; the office may refer it to the proper authority.
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Add specialized channels only when they fit
- Pandemic-response funds: Send allegations involving pandemic relief to the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), in addition to the responsible agency OIG when appropriate.
- General federal fraud: The FBI is an option when the conduct is a broader criminal scheme or affects victims beyond one agency program.
- Cyber-enabled crime: File with IC3 when phishing, online account takeover, malware, electronic payment manipulation, or another internet-enabled method is central to the loss. Also notify the program OIG if federal funds are involved.
These channels serve different purposes. An OIG can investigate misuse of its agency’s funds; the FBI can pursue a wider criminal matter; IC3 records the cybercrime component; and PRAC focuses on pandemic-response oversight.
What to put in any federal fraud complaint
Use a factual, chronological narrative
Begin with a one-sentence summary identifying the program and suspected conduct. Then arrange events by date. For each event, identify who acted, what was said or submitted, where it occurred, and which record supports your account. Explain how you learned the information and distinguish direct knowledge from inference.
Provide identifiers investigators can use
- Program name and administering agency
- Names, aliases, business names, and contact details of the people or entities involved
- Application, award, loan, claim, contract, or payment numbers
- Relevant physical addresses, account details, dates, and locations
- Names and contact details of witnesses, if you may lawfully share them
- Estimated loss, attempted loss, or amount of federal money at issue
- Any corrective action, repayment, denial, suspension, or prior report
Attach corroborating records
Useful attachments can include emails, applications, payment records, invoices, photographs, letters, contracts, inspection reports, and messages. Preserve the original files and their metadata when possible. Make a working copy for the submission, label each file with its date and source, and keep a private index describing what each attachment proves.
State uncertainty instead of filling gaps
Do not accuse someone of a fact you cannot support. Use wording such as “the invoice appears inconsistent with the payment record” and identify the comparison. If a date, amount, or identity is unknown, say so. A precise account with stated limits is more useful than speculation.
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Handle sensitive and classified information correctly
Do not send classified information through an ordinary online complaint form or regular email. Follow the agency’s instructions for classified material. For unclassified sensitive records, review the form’s handling directions and redact information that is not needed to explain the suspected fraud, while retaining an unaltered original securely.
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| Choice | What it means | Main benefit | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anonymous | You do not provide your name or usable contact details | Maximum separation between you and the report | Investigators may be unable to ask follow-up questions or clarify evidence |
| Confidential | You identify yourself and ask the OIG to protect your identity | Investigators can contact you while generally withholding your name without consent | Disclosure may still be legally unavoidable in some circumstances |
| Identified, no confidentiality request | You provide contact details without requesting confidential treatment | Easy communication and clarification | Your identity may receive less protection than under a confidentiality request |
Choose the option that matches your safety and evidentiary needs. If retaliation or personal risk is a concern, explain that concern in the complaint and read the OIG’s confidentiality notice before submitting. Regardless of the choice, avoid including unnecessary personal information about yourself or unrelated third parties.
What happens after you file
- Intake review: The OIG reviews the allegation for relevance, completeness, and jurisdiction.
- Referral or assignment: Depending on the facts, it may open or refer an investigation, audit, inspection, evaluation, or another review.
- Requests for clarification: A contactable complainant may receive questions or a request for additional records.
- Limited status information: Agencies may not disclose investigative steps or outcomes. SBA specifically says its Hotline does not provide case-status updates.
Keep your submission confirmation, number, file list, and a dated log of later communications. If you obtain a new document, send it through the same channel and reference the existing complaint number when one was issued. Do not repeatedly resend identical material; add only relevant new information.
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Immediate scam or identity-theft victimization
For a suspected FEMA scam, FEMA advises contacting local police or the sheriff when appropriate and using its fraud branch. If someone used your identity to obtain relief, explain the identity-theft indicators, disputed application or payment, and any account or credit impact. DOJ directs consumers to the Federal Trade Commission for consumer fraud and identity theft, while the FBI handles general fraud.
Online attacks and account compromise
Use IC3 when the method was cyber-enabled, such as a phishing link, compromised email, fake online portal, or electronic-payment diversion. Preserve the original messages, full email headers when available, URLs, telephone numbers, screenshots, transaction records, and timestamps. Do not click a suspicious link again merely to collect evidence.
Report the program connection too
A cybercrime or identity-theft report does not replace an agency OIG complaint when federal relief money was targeted. Send the same factual core to the OIG, adapting the explanation to the agency’s program and attaching only lawfully obtained records.
A practical decision workflow
- Identify the money: Determine which federal agency administered the loan, grant, disaster payment, or contract.
- Classify the conduct: Decide whether it is program fraud, an immediate scam, identity theft, general criminal fraud, cybercrime, or a combination.
- Select the primary office: Use SBA OIG for SBA matters, DHS OIG for FEMA matters, or the responsible agency’s OIG for another program.
- Add a specialized report: Use PRAC for pandemic-response allegations, DOJ’s National Center for Disaster Fraud for disaster-linked allegations, FBI for broader fraud, IC3 for cybercrime, and local police for an immediate local threat.
- Prepare the record: Build the chronology, identifiers, loss estimate, witness list, and attachment index.
- Choose privacy settings: Decide whether to report anonymously, request confidentiality, or identify yourself openly.
- Submit and preserve proof: Save the confirmation, complaint number, submitted files, and date of filing.
- Supplement carefully: Send material new evidence through the same channel and reference the original submission.
Common reporting mistakes to avoid
- Sending an SBA allegation only to a general consumer-fraud form instead of the SBA OIG Hotline
- Reporting FEMA assistance fraud without notifying DHS OIG
- Choosing an OIG based on where you live rather than which agency controlled the funds
- Mixing assumptions, rumors, and verified facts without labeling them
- Submitting altered screenshots or summaries while discarding original records
- Guessing at a loss amount or date instead of stating that it is unknown
- Including classified information in an ordinary online form
- Expecting a complaint number to provide an investigation status update
- Using only a cybercrime channel when the underlying target was a federal relief program
What the SBA complaint volume shows—and what it does not
The SBA OIG recorded 10,364 hotline complaints during the reporting period April 1 through September 30, 2025. Categories included Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), identity theft, contract fraud, and other complaints. This is a count of hotline complaints for that six-month period, not a confirmed-fraud total, a loss estimate, or a measure of all federal relief fraud.
Quick Recap
Final checklist before submitting
- Have you named the federal program and agency?
- Can an investigator identify the people, businesses, accounts, or addresses involved?
- Is the narrative chronological and limited to facts you can explain?
- Did you state how you learned each important fact?
- Did you include dates, amounts, witnesses, and relevant records?
- Are attachments lawful, legible, labeled, and preserved in original form?
- Did you remove unnecessary personal information and keep classified material out of ordinary forms?
- Did you choose anonymous, confidential, or identified reporting deliberately?
- Did you save the confirmation or complaint number?
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