DO NOT IGNORE THIS! Document everything NOW. My ex did this to me and because I didn't respond quickly enough with the right documentation, it created a 2-year nightmare with the IRS. Print out all text messages where you told him not to claim them. Make copies of your court order. Get documentation from the school showing your address as their residence. The most important thing is filing Form 8332 showing you DID NOT release your claim to the children. Even though your return was accepted, his paper-filed return could still cause problems.

I went through this exact scenario two years ago. Your court order is your strongest protection here - the IRS follows legal custody arrangements, not just who pays support. Since you filed first and were accepted, you're in good position. A few practical tips from my experience: - Keep screenshots of those text messages where you explicitly told him not to claim them - If he does try to file, his e-file will likely be rejected immediately due to duplicate SSNs - If he paper files to try to bypass the system, it'll get caught during processing but may take longer to resolve The "tax preparers" he consulted either don't understand custody law or he's misrepresenting what they told him. Paying child support doesn't override a court order that specifically grants you the right to claim the children. Stay calm and document everything, but don't let him pressure you into "releasing" your claim. You have every legal right to claim your kids based on both custody time (more than half the year) and your court order.

Something nobody mentioned yet - the W-9 is also used for certain financial accounts! I had to fill one out when I opened a high-yield savings account last month because they needed to verify my taxpayer status. Banks and investment companies use them to confirm your tax info and determine if they need to withhold any taxes from interest or dividends they pay you.

Great question! As someone who was completely lost about tax forms when I started freelancing, I totally understand the confusion. Here's the simplest way I think about W-9s: It's basically your way of saying "Hey, I'm a real person with a real Social Security Number, and if you pay me more than $600 this year, you'll need to send both me and the IRS a 1099 form at tax time." The key thing that helped me understand it was realizing that W-9s are ONLY for contractor/freelance work, never for regular employee jobs. If your cousin's construction business is hiring you as an independent contractor (sounds like it since it's weekend/side work), then yes, you'll need to fill out a W-9. One heads up - since you won't have taxes automatically withheld like at a regular job, make sure to set aside about 25-30% of whatever he pays you for taxes. I learned this the hard way my first year! And definitely keep a copy. I keep mine in a folder labeled "Tax Stuff" so I can remember who has my info when 1099s start arriving in January.

This is SO frustrating! I had a similar issue two years ago where my account number got changed somehow during processing. The IRS tried to deposit to the wrong account, it got rejected, and then I had to wait almost 6 weeks for the paper check to arrive. One thing that really helped me was checking my tax transcript regularly - it shows the exact timeline of what's happening with your refund. Look for code 846 (refund issued) followed by code 841 (refund cancelled/rejected) - that confirms the direct deposit failed and they're switching to paper check. The waiting is the worst part, especially when you need the money for unexpected expenses. But at least once they switch to paper check mode, it usually arrives within 3-4 weeks. Hang in there! 💪

This exact same thing happened to me last year! I was absolutely panicking when I saw different account numbers on the Where's My Refund tool. Turns out it was because I used TurboTax's "pay with refund" option - they create a temporary bank account to collect their fees first, then forward the rest to you. The account numbers looked completely different from mine, which scared me at first. But I eventually got my refund via direct deposit after TurboTax took their cut. Check your TurboTax account or confirmation emails - there should be details about the "Refund Transfer" service if that's what happened. If it's NOT the TurboTax thing, then yeah, you're probably looking at a paper check situation. When my sister had a legitimate banking error on her return, she waited about 5 weeks for the paper check to arrive. The IRS tries the direct deposit once, and if it fails, they automatically switch to mailing a check to your address on file. Either way, definitely check your tax transcript on the IRS website - it'll show you exactly what's happening with codes like 846 (refund issued) and 841 (refund rejected). Hope this helps ease some of your stress!

I'm going through a similar situation right now! Just to add another perspective - I called my local Social Security office before filing and they told me something helpful: even after you get your new Social Security card with your updated name, you can still file taxes under your old name for the current tax year if that's what's on your W2. They said it's actually better to keep everything consistent within the same tax year. What I'm planning to do is file this year with my birth name (since that's on all my 2024 documents), then update my Social Security card right after I file. That way next year everything will be clean and consistent with my new name. The Social Security office said this approach avoids any potential processing delays or confusion. Also wanted to mention - keep a copy of your court order with your tax records even if you don't need to submit it. I learned this from my tax preparer - it's good documentation to have in your files showing when the name change was official in case any questions come up later.

Just wanted to share my experience as someone who went through this exact same process two years ago! The advice here is spot on - definitely file with whatever name is on your Social Security card and W2 to keep everything consistent. One thing I wish someone had told me: when you do update your name with Social Security after tax season, bring multiple copies of your court order. They kept one copy for their records, and I needed additional certified copies later for updating my passport, bank accounts, and other documents. It saved me from having to go back to the courthouse multiple times. Also, Virginia doesn't have any special requirements for name changes on state returns - you'll just follow the same principle of using whatever name matches your federal return and Social Security records. The state return will automatically align with your federal filing. Good luck with everything, and congratulations again on your name change!

Maybe try talking to your parents first? I had the same issue and just sat down with mine and showed them my expenses vs what they paid for me. They genuinely thought they could still claim me and didn't realize I was providing most of my own support. The conversation was actually fine once I showed them how the rules worked!

I'm going through something similar right now! I'm 23 and graduated last spring, been working full-time since June. My parents also handle our family taxes and just assumed they could still claim me. What really helped me was actually calculating my expenses for the year - rent, groceries, car payments, insurance, etc. I was shocked to realize I was covering about 70% of my own costs! Once I showed my parents the breakdown, they understood they couldn't claim me anymore. One thing to consider - even if you were living at home or they were paying some expenses while you were in school (Jan-May), if your income from working full-time (June-Dec) covered more than half your total yearly support, then you provided more than half. Don't forget to include things like tuition payments, health insurance, phone bills, etc. in your calculations. Definitely have that conversation with your parents before anyone files. It's way easier to prevent the issue than deal with the IRS sorting it out later, which can take months and delay your refund.