There are many ways to recover valuable income tax refunds from losses from financial crimes that are either not actual ponzi schemes or that are Ponzi Schemes that do not fit the standards of the safe harbor. The law permits tax deductions for losses from financial fraud under the theft loss deduction category.
This is a more difficult task than relying on the safe harbor rules. The taxpayer must be careful to prove the theft, the amount of the loss and the time of the loss if the taxpayer is going to be successful.