This is 100% a tax scam called "refund fraud" and it's actually really common. The preparer is likely falsifying your coworkers' income or creating fake business expenses. Those ridiculously high refunds are a massive red flag. I worked in a tax office where someone was doing this. The preparer was fired when the company found out, but dozens of clients got audited. The worst part is the preparer had moved on and disappeared while the clients were left dealing with the IRS. They all had to repay the fraudulent refunds plus interest and penalties. The IRS is actually pretty good at catching these schemes. They have systems that flag returns with unusually high refunds compared to income levels. Your coworkers should immediately get a copy of their returns and review what was claimed. If they find false information, they should file amended returns ASAP before the IRS comes to them.

Tell your friends to RUN from this tax preparer immediately! I see several specific red flags that indicate what kind of scam this likely is: 1. If your coworkers don't own businesses but are getting huge refunds, the preparer is probably creating fake Schedule C businesses with losses to offset their W-2 income 2. The "meet at Starbucks" thing is classic for fly-by-night preparers who don't want a traceable location 3. The rush to "get refunds before IRS changes rules" is nonsense designed to pressure people I've seen cases where preparers like this file the return electronically, showing the client one version but actually submitting a different version to the IRS with all kinds of fake deductions. By the time the IRS catches up (and they will), the preparer is long gone.

I'm dealing with something very similar right now! Got a notice saying I owe $1,247 plus interest on my 2290 truck tax, but I have the canceled check from when I paid it back in February. The most frustrating part is they definitely processed it - I can see it cleared my business account. From what I'm reading here, it sounds like this is happening to a lot of people with Form 2290. I'm going to try the Business & Specialty Tax Line number that Dylan mentioned (866-699-4096) first thing Monday morning. Has anyone had success with just mailing in copies of the payment proof along with a letter explaining the situation? I'm worried about calling and getting stuck on hold for hours, but I also don't want the interest to keep building up while I wait for them to process mailed documentation. This whole situation is so stressful when you know you paid what you owe but they're treating you like a tax evader!

I've been dealing with IRS payment issues for years through my tax preparation business, and Form 2290 truck tax problems are unfortunately very common right now. The IRS has acknowledged there are systemic issues with how these payments get processed and applied to accounts. Here's my recommended approach based on what's worked for my clients: First, don't panic about the interest - if you can prove you paid on time, they'll reverse those charges once the error is corrected. Second, when you call that Business & Specialty Tax Line (866-699-4096), have your EIN, the exact payment date, amount, and check number (or confirmation number for electronic payments) ready before you dial. If you can't get through by phone, send a certified letter with copies of your payment proof to the address on the notice. Include the phrase "Request for Payment Trace" in your subject line - this helps route it to the right department faster. Most importantly, keep calling or following up every 2 weeks until it's resolved. These cases can take 30-45 days to fully process, but staying on top of it prevents it from falling through the cracks. The good news is once they locate your payment in their system, the correction usually happens quickly and they'll send you a letter confirming the account is settled.

I've been using the Walmart Money Card for my tax refunds for the past two years, and I've noticed the timing can be pretty inconsistent. This year my refund hit exactly 48 hours after WMR showed "sent," but last year it took almost a week. One thing that helped me track it better was setting up account alerts through the Walmart Money Card app - not just for deposits, but also for "pending transactions" since sometimes the refund shows up there first before it's actually available to spend. Also, if you're really worried about the timing with your medical bills, you might want to call the billing department and explain the situation. Many medical providers are willing to work with patients on payment timing, especially when you can show proof that a refund is coming. I had to do this with my dentist last year and they were surprisingly understanding about giving me an extra week to pay once I showed them my WMR status.

I'm going through the exact same situation right now! Filed on March 3rd, got approved status on March 8th, and still waiting for it to hit my Walmart Money Card. What's been driving me crazy is that I can see on the IRS transcript that it shows a deposit date of March 14th, but that was Friday and still nothing. I called Green Dot customer service this morning and they said sometimes weekend deposits don't process until the following Tuesday due to ACH processing schedules. The rep also mentioned that if your refund amount is over $2,500, they sometimes put a 24-48 hour verification hold on it even after it's received from the IRS. Have you tried checking your card balance at weird hours? I've been checking mine at like 6am and 11pm because I read somewhere that government deposits can post outside normal business hours. Fingers crossed we both see our money soon - medical bills definitely don't wait for anyone!

Has anyone used the IRS transcript service for this? You can request a complete tax transcript that includes all filed schedules by using the Get Transcript tool on irs.gov. My bank actually preferred this over copies I provided because they knew it was coming directly from the IRS and included everything.

Great question! I went through this exact same situation with my credit union last year. The key thing to understand is that when banks say "ALL schedules," they literally mean every single schedule that was filed with your return, even if it shows zero amounts or doesn't seem relevant to your business. For your single-member LLC situation, you've covered the main ones (C, SE, and 1), but they might also want to see: - Schedule 2 (Additional Taxes) - if you had any additional taxes beyond what's on the main form - Schedule 3 (Additional Credits and Payments) - shows any tax credits you claimed - Any other schedules that were part of your original filing The easiest approach is to send them a complete copy of everything you filed with the IRS, including all pages. Banks often use third-party verification services that expect to see the entire return package exactly as it was submitted. If you're not sure what you originally filed, you can get an official tax transcript from the IRS website (irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript) which will show exactly what schedules were included in your return. This is actually what many banks prefer since it comes directly from the IRS. Don't stress too much about it - this is a standard request and once you provide everything, the process usually moves pretty quickly!

If your refund went to a wrong account, it'll eventually get rejected and the IRS will mail you a paper check. But it takes FOREVER. Mine took 9 weeks after the failed direct deposit attempt. Just be patient, it'll come eventually...

This exact thing happened to me last year! The IRS sent my $4,200 refund to an account with completely different last 4 digits than mine. Turns out there was a data entry error somewhere in their system - my correct account info was on my return but somehow got scrambled in processing. Here's what worked for me: I filed Form 3911 (refund trace) by certified mail and also managed to get through to an agent who confirmed the deposit went to a non-existent account. Since the account didn't exist, the bank automatically rejected it after about 10 business days, and the IRS issued me a paper check. The whole process took about 6 weeks from when I filed the trace form. Keep checking your mail - sometimes the paper check arrives before you get any notification that it was issued. Also grab your account transcripts online if you can - there might be rejection codes that show what happened. Don't panic too much - if it truly went to the wrong place, the IRS has procedures to fix it. It's just frustratingly slow. Good luck!