Anyone know if there's a fee for filing an extension through TurboTax? I remember a few years ago they tried to charge me extra for this but I'm not sure if that's still the case.

Just want to add from my experience - when you file an extension through TurboTax, it's super important to be as accurate as possible with your estimate even if you don't have all your documents yet. I learned this the hard way a couple years ago when I way underestimated what I owed and got hit with penalties even though I had filed the extension properly. What helped me was looking at my previous year's tax return and adjusting based on any major changes in income. If your freelance work was similar to last year, you can use that as a baseline and add a buffer. The IRS is generally more forgiving if you overpay and need a refund than if you underpay and owe more later. Also, don't forget that if you made quarterly estimated payments during the year, those count toward what you owe! I almost double-paid one year because I forgot to factor those in when calculating my extension payment.

Don't panic! I went through the exact same thing last year. The "refund status unavailable" message after verification is super common and doesn't mean anything is wrong with your return. What's happening is that your return got flagged for identity verification (which you completed), and now it's being manually reviewed by an IRS employee. During this review process, the automated WMR system can't access your file, hence the "unavailable" message. Since you verified on April 10th and could see your refund for a couple days, that's actually a good sign - it means your return was processing normally before hitting the verification requirement. The fact that it showed $3,456 processing means that amount was already calculated and approved. I'd give it at least 1-2 more weeks before worrying. In the meantime, definitely check your transcripts like others suggested - they often show updates even when WMR doesn't. You can get them free directly from the IRS website. Try not to check WMR obsessively (I know it's hard!) because it'll just show the same message until processing completes. Your refund is most likely still on track, just taking the scenic route through manual review.

I experienced this exact same issue a few months ago and it's honestly one of the most frustrating parts of the whole process! The good news is that seeing your $3,456 refund amount initially means the IRS has already processed and approved your return - that number doesn't just appear randomly. After identity verification through ID.me, there's typically a 1-3 week period where WMR goes completely dark like this. It's basically the IRS equivalent of "we'll call you back" while they finish up the manual review process. The system can't display your status because a human reviewer has your file pulled from the automated system. Since you verified on April 10th, I'd expect to see movement by the end of this week or early next week. In my case, WMR suddenly updated one morning with a direct deposit date, no gradual progress - just straight from "unavailable" to "refund sent." One tip: if you have the IRS2Go mobile app, sometimes it updates before the website does. Also, your bank account might show a pending deposit before WMR even updates, so keep an eye on that too. Hang in there - the waiting after verification is terrible but you're almost through it!

Has anyone dealt with the situation where BOTH you and your parents file conflicting returns? I accidentally claimed myself as independent last year when my parents had already claimed me as dependent. It was a NIGHTMARE. We got letters from the IRS and had to file amended returns.

This is such a common situation! I went through something similar when I was 24 and had just started working full-time while living at home. The support test calculation can be tricky, but it's really important to get it right. One thing that helped me was creating a spreadsheet to track all the support items. I included fair market rent for my room (looked up similar rentals in the area), my portion of utilities, groceries, health insurance premiums, car expenses, phone bill, clothing, entertainment, etc. Then I calculated what percentage I paid vs. what my parents covered. Don't forget to include things like the value of meals your parents provide, any medical expenses they pay for you, and educational expenses if applicable. These can add up to more than you might think. The key insight for me was realizing that even though I was earning decent money, the fair market value of housing in my area was really high, so my parents were actually providing more than half my total support even with my income. Make sure you're using realistic market values for housing costs - don't lowball it just because your parents own their home outright.

One thing nobody mentioned yet - check if your spouse has ever been a victim of identity theft. My wife and I had a similar rejection and after weeks of back and forth, we discovered someone had filed a fraudulent return using her SSN the previous year, which put a flag on her SSN in the IRS system. We had to go through the identity theft resolution process with the IRS and file an affidavit. It was a pain but eventually got resolved. Might be worth checking your credit reports too just to be safe.

I went through something very similar last year! The key thing to understand is that the IRS rejection doesn't always tell you the exact problem - it just says there's a mismatch. In my case, it wasn't the SSN itself but how my husband's name was formatted. Here's what I'd recommend doing in order: 1. **Check the Social Security card character by character** - Look for spaces, hyphens, periods, or middle initials that might be on the card but not in your return (or vice versa). Even a missing period after a middle initial can cause rejection. 2. **Call SSA first, not the IRS** - The Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 can tell you exactly how your spouse's name appears in their system. This is what the IRS cross-references against. 3. **Don't assume last year's format is still correct** - Sometimes the IRS tightens their matching algorithms or updates their systems, causing previously accepted formats to suddenly get rejected. If the SSA confirms everything matches and you're still getting rejected, then it might be worth exploring other causes like identity theft flags or prior year discrepancies. But start with the name formatting - that's the culprit in about 80% of these cases. The good news is once you identify the exact issue, the fix is usually simple and your amended return should process quickly!

I had the exact same experience with the ID verification after switching from TurboTax to FreeTaxUSA this year! It's definitely frustrating when you've been filing the same way for years and suddenly get flagged. One thing that helped me track progress was setting up the IRS online account to view my tax transcript - it shows much more detail than Where's My Refund. Look for codes like 971 (which indicates identity verification) and 570 (which means your account is frozen pending verification). Once you see a code 571, that means the freeze has been released and your refund should process within a few days. The whole process took about 12 business days for me from verification to actual refund deposit. I know it's nerve-wracking when you're used to getting your refund on schedule, but it sounds like you did everything correctly. Just give it a few more days and you should see movement!

This is such a relief to read! I'm going through the exact same thing right now - filed with FreeTaxUSA for the first time after years of using TurboTax, and got hit with the ID.me verification request. I was so worried I'd done something wrong or that my return was flagged for audit. I completed the ID.me process about a week ago and have been obsessively checking Where's My Refund every day with no updates. Reading all these experiences makes me feel so much better - it sounds like 7-14 business days is totally normal for the verification processing. I'm definitely going to set up that IRS online account to check my transcript like others suggested. It's frustrating that the IRS doesn't communicate these timelines better, but at least now I know this is just part of their new security measures and not a sign that something's wrong with my return. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences!