I went through something similar with about $35K in tax debt from my consulting business. The IRS was actually more reasonable than I expected when I finally worked up the courage to call them directly. What really helped me was getting organized BEFORE calling. I gathered all my financial documents - bank statements, monthly expenses, pay stubs, etc. The IRS agent walked me through their Collection Information Statement (Form 433-F) over the phone, which calculates how much you can realistically pay based on your income minus necessary living expenses. The whole process took about 3 weeks from my first call to getting the official payment agreement in writing. The agent was professional and actually seemed to want to help me find a solution rather than just collect money. I ended up with a 6-year payment plan at $425/month, which was way better than the $8,000 the tax relief company wanted upfront just to "evaluate" my case. My biggest advice: don't be intimidated by calling the IRS. Yes, the hold times are brutal, but the agents are generally reasonable if you're honest about your situation and show you're trying to comply. Those tax relief companies prey on fear, but the IRS has programs available that you can access yourself with some patience and preparation.

I can share my experience from dealing with a similar situation. I owed about $24,000 in back taxes from 2021-2022 and was getting those same aggressive marketing calls and mailers promising to settle for "pennies on the dollar." After reading through all these responses, I decided to skip the tax relief companies and go directly to the IRS. It took me 4 attempts over 2 weeks to finally get through to someone, but once I did, the agent was surprisingly helpful and patient. The key thing I learned is that the IRS has standard programs available to everyone - you don't need to pay someone thousands to access them. I qualified for an installment agreement at $320/month over 8 years, and they also approved first-time penalty abatement which reduced my total debt by about $3,200. What really struck me was how straightforward the process was once I actually talked to the IRS. No mysterious negotiations or special connections needed - just honest communication about what I could afford based on my actual financial situation. Those tax relief companies aren't necessarily scams, but they're charging premium prices for services you can get for free directly from the IRS if you're willing to be patient and persistent. Save your money and deal with the source directly - the IRS agents are real people who generally want to help you find a workable solution.

I just went through this exact same process last month for my LLC's late filing penalty! You're definitely on the right track with selecting "Balance due on return or notice" - that's the correct option for penalty payments. The warning message about the tax period being out of the usual range is completely normal when you're paying an older penalty. Don't let it scare you - just click "Continue" and proceed with the payment. The system shows this warning for any tax year that's not the current or immediately previous year. A few tips from my experience: - Make sure you're logged into EFTPS with your LLC's EIN, not your personal SSN - In the reference field, enter something like "Form 1065 Late Filing Penalty 2019" to make it crystal clear what the payment is for - Print or save the confirmation page - you'll want that reference number - The payment typically processes within 1-2 business days The $2,600 amount sounds about right for a multi-year late filing penalty. Once you submit the payment, you can check your account transcript online in about a week to confirm it was applied correctly to your penalty balance.

I actually just went through this exact same situation with my LLC's 2019 Form 1065 late filing penalty a few weeks ago! You're absolutely doing it right - "Balance due on return or notice" is the correct selection for penalty payments. That warning message about the tax period being out of range is totally normal and expected when paying penalties for older tax years. The IRS system just wants to make sure you're intentionally paying for an older period. Go ahead and click "Continue" - it won't cause any issues. A couple of things that helped me get through the process smoothly: - Double-check that you're logged into EFTPS using your LLC's EIN (not your personal SSN) - In the payment reference field, I wrote "Form 1065 Late Filing Penalty - Tax Year 2019" which made it very clear what the payment was for - Keep a screenshot or printout of your confirmation page for your records The payment should process within 1-2 business days, and you can verify it was applied correctly by checking your business account transcript online after about a week. With a $2,600 penalty amount, you definitely want to make sure everything goes smoothly - but following these steps should get you there without any problems!

I went through this exact same frustrating situation with my New York return just a few weeks ago! After trying everything suggested in this thread (and huge thanks to everyone for all the detailed advice), I wanted to share what finally worked for me since it might help others. I called the NY tax department first thing in the morning and got through in about 30 minutes. The rep gave me the specific reject code and said it was due to a "dependent verification mismatch." Turns out I had entered my daughter's date of birth as 2019 on the state return but 2018 on federal (where it was correct). Such a tiny typo but it completely blocked the state filing. The really helpful part was that New York allowed me to make the correction and resubmit electronically after waiting 24 hours - I didn't have to mail anything! I fixed the birth date, waited a day, resubmitted through TurboTax, and it was accepted immediately. So definitely call Michigan and get that specific reject code, but also ask about electronic resubmission options. Many states allow this for simple data entry errors, which could save you weeks of waiting for paper processing. Sometimes what feels like a huge problem is just one mistyped digit that's easily fixable once you know what to look for. Don't give up - there's definitely a solution hiding in there somewhere!

I just wanted to follow up on this thread since I've been dealing with a similar issue in California. After reading through everyone's incredibly helpful advice, I tried the early morning call strategy and actually got through to the CA Franchise Tax Board in under 45 minutes! The rep was able to give me the specific reject code (R0000-503-01) and explained that my return was rejected because I had claimed the California Earned Income Tax Credit but hadn't included a required supporting schedule that's separate from the federal EITC forms. TurboTax had calculated the credit correctly but somehow missed generating the CA-specific form. What's really interesting is that this rejection had nothing to do with data entry errors or mismatched information - it was purely a missing form issue that only applied to California's requirements. The federal return processed fine because the IRS doesn't need that additional California schedule. I was able to go back into TurboTax, search specifically for "California EITC schedule," add the missing form, and then submit a paper return with all the correct documentation. Just got confirmation yesterday that it was accepted! For anyone still struggling with state rejections, I'd definitely recommend asking specifically about state-only forms and schedules that might not be automatically generated by your tax software. Sometimes it's not about fixing what you entered, but about adding something that was never included in the first place.

According to SBTPG's terms and conditions under section 4.3(b) of their Refund Advance Agreement, approval is "subject to underwriting criteria including but not limited to verification of tax refund claim and credit evaluation." I went through this process this January and can confirm they do evaluate both. My refund was projected at $12,400, and I was approved for a $5,000 advance with a credit score of 710. Would like someone to confirm if this is typical or if I should have qualified for more?

I've been through this process with SBTPG twice in the last few years, and I can confirm it's definitely both credit and refund amount based. Here's what I've learned from my experience: The $7k advance you mentioned typically requires: • Expected refund of at least $12k-14k (they won't advance more than ~50% of your expected refund) • Credit score probably in the 650+ range (though they don't publish exact requirements) • Clean tax history with no major issues Since you usually qualify for the $4k advance with TurboTax/H&R Block, you're likely in decent standing credit-wise. But the jump from $4k to $7k is significant and they're much more selective at that level. My advice: if your expected refund this year is substantially higher than previous years (like $12k+), it might be worth trying. But if you're expecting a similar refund to previous years, you'll probably get offered something in the $3k-5k range regardless of which service you use. The good news is that most of these applications are soft credit pulls, so shopping around won't hurt your score. Just be prepared that the "up to $7k" marketing might not reflect what you actually qualify for.

Has anyone tried to use tax software to figure this out? I bought my first house this year too and I'm trying to decide between TurboTax, H&R Block, and FreeTaxUSA for next year. Wondering which one explains the mortgage interest deduction the best for newbies?

Great question! I went through this same confusion when I bought my house two years ago. Here's what I wish someone had told me upfront: The key number to remember is that standard deduction for married filing jointly in 2024 is $29,200. So you need your mortgage interest + property taxes + state/local taxes (capped at $10K) + any other itemized deductions to exceed that amount. With your $425K house, you're probably looking at around $18K-22K in mortgage interest your first year (depending on your rate). Add your property taxes and you might be close, but probably not quite there unless you have significant charitable donations or other deductions. One thing that helped me was getting my 1098 form from my lender in January - it shows exactly how much interest you paid. Then you can see if itemizing makes sense or if you should just take the standard deduction. As for adjusting withholding - I'd be cautious about that until you're sure you'll be itemizing. It's safer to get a refund than owe money at tax time, especially in your first year of homeownership when there are so many unknowns.