Government agency scams are when fraudsters send out official looking letters or emails to ask for money or personal information.
The correspondence gives the impression that they are from a government department and imply they have some form of authority.
The letter or email might advise that you must register in order to comply with some kind of legislation – for a fee. Other alternatives include asking you to pay a fine for breaches to the law, or requesting bank details to claim a tax rebate.
Fraud has been committed if money has been lost.
If fraud has been committed, report it to Action Fraud.
See also:
Fake invoice scams
Advance fee scams
Phishing