I'm having this EXACT issue but with Credit Karma Tax! The Premium Tax Credit calculation is off by over $2100 compared to what I should be getting. Has anyone successfully resolved this with other tax software providers or is this some industry-wide glitch this year?

I've been dealing with this exact Form 8962 issue and wanted to share what finally worked for me. After trying multiple approaches, I discovered that TurboTax has a specific bug this year where it's not properly handling the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) percentages for certain income ranges. Here's what I did to fix it: Go to Forms view in TurboTax, find Form 8962, and check line 5 (your household income as a percentage of the FPL). If this number seems off compared to what you'd expect based on your income and family size, that's likely where the error is occurring. The 2025 FPL amounts are different from what TurboTax seems to be using in some cases. For a household of 1, the FPL is $15,060. For 2 people it's $20,440, and it goes up $5,380 for each additional person. You can manually calculate your percentage and override TurboTax's calculation if needed. Also double-check that TurboTax is using the correct "applicable figure" percentage table on lines 6-8. The software seems to occasionally use the wrong percentage bracket, which throws off the entire credit calculation. Once I corrected these values manually, my credit amount increased by almost $1,800 to match what I should actually be receiving.

Anybody know how far back they can actually go for an audit? Is there a statute of limitations or can they just decide to audit you from 10 years ago whenever they want?

The timing is definitely frustrating but unfortunately pretty standard. I went through a similar situation with my 2020 return that got audited in late 2023. The pandemic really backed up state tax departments and they're still working through those years. One thing that helped me was creating a detailed timeline of what I could remember from 2021 before diving into the documents. I wrote down major life events, work changes, moves, etc. from that year which helped me remember where certain documents might be stored. Also, don't panic about having every single receipt perfectly organized. State auditors are usually reasonable if you can demonstrate good faith effort to comply. If you're missing some supporting docs, explain the circumstances (moves, storage, time elapsed) in your response letter. They often accept reasonable explanations for missing paperwork, especially for smaller deductions. The key is responding promptly and being thorough with what you can provide. Most of these audits are just verification exercises and get resolved without major issues if you stay organized and cooperative.

just wanna add that your parents should probably claim you as a dependent if they provide more than half your support (housing, food, tuition help, etc). the american opportunity credit is worth up to $2500 and your parents can only claim it if they claim you as a dependent. since you only worked one month, you probably dont have enough income for the credit to be worth much to you personally. you'll probably still get a small refund from your summer job withholding regardless of whether youre a dependent or not. make sure to file regardless!

One thing nobody's mentioned that tripped me up last year - if u make under like $12,500 (the standard deduction amount) filing as single, you might not even need to file federally! But u should STILL file to get any withheld money back from those summer paychecks. For the 1098-Ts, whoever claims you as dependent gets to use those for the education credits. in my case, my parents let me file independent last year because they make too much to qualify for the education credits anyway (there's an income limit). but if ur parents can use the credits, usually best for them to claim you and you can still file to get ur withholding back on ur own return.

You might also want to check if you qualify for any hardship exemptions. For student loans, you can request a hearing within 65 days if you believe the offset is causing financial hardship. For unemployment overpayments, some states have hardship waivers if you can prove the overpayment wasn't your fault or that repayment would cause serious financial difficulty. Documentation is key - gather bank statements, bills, income proof, etc.

Also worth noting - if you're dealing with both student loans and unemployment debt, prioritize getting the student loans sorted first since those offsets tend to be larger. You can request a copy of your offset notice from Treasury to see the exact amounts each agency is claiming. Sometimes there are errors that can be disputed. And if you're expecting a state refund too, act fast because some states participate in offset programs as well. Document everything and keep copies of all communications!

if ur worried abt understanding ur transcript check out taxr.ai - its basically an AI that translates all the IRS mumbo jumbo into normal person speak. best dollar i ever spent on anything tax related tbh

Same thing happened to me last year! Don't stress about 766 and 768 not adding up to your total refund - there's usually other stuff like withholdings, estimated payments, or other credits that factor in. The key is to look for code 846 which shows your actual refund amount and date. If you see that, you're golden! 👍