Wild notions of what's legal can be amusing, but when it comes to taxes, they're a problem.

Plenty of scam artists try to convince fee-paying tax filers that they don't owe any income tax at all by making what the IRS calls "frivolous tax arguments."

Among them: Filing and paying your taxes is voluntary. You may refuse to pay taxes on religious or moral grounds by invoking the First Amendment. Only federal government workers owe income tax.

Then there's this doozy: You don't owe federal income taxes if you file a return saying that you have no income and no tax liability. People apparently do this despite having recorded taxable income through, say, a paycheck. And they often ask for a refund of the taxes their employer withheld, the IRS said.

Taxpayers may contest their tax liabilities. "But no one has the right to disobey the law or disregard their responsibility to pay taxes," the IRS noted.

If you file a frivolous return -- or let someone else do so for you - you'll pay a $5,000 penalty for the privilege. You could also face accuracy-related penalties, a civil fraud penalty, and an erroneous refund claim penalty among others.