For what it's worth, I went through this exact situation in 2024. You definitely can't claim your spouse as a dependent - that's not how the tax code works. But I learned that filing jointly often gives you better tax benefits anyway. If her SSN doesn't arrive in time, file Form 4868 for an automatic 6-month extension. That should give plenty of time for the SSN to arrive, and there's no penalty as long as you pay any estimated taxes owed by the original deadline. We ended up saving almost $3k by waiting and filing jointly versus my original plan.

One thing nobody mentioned - you might actually qualify for "married filing jointly" status even if your wife doesn't have an SSN yet by using the "NRA spouse exemption." If your wife is a nonresident alien (which sounds possible based on recent arrival), you can elect to treat her as a resident for tax purposes, which lets you file jointly.

Anyone try calling the TurboTax support line? I had a similar issue and their support team actually helped identify the problem was with my state ID number. Might be worth a shot before trying other services?

I've been through this exact same nightmare! One thing that helped me was checking if there were any spaces or special characters accidentally entered with the EIN. Sometimes when you copy-paste from a PDF W-2, it picks up invisible characters that look fine but cause reject codes. Also, if your employer recently went through any corporate changes (merger, acquisition, name change), they might have multiple EINs on file with the IRS and it can take time for everything to sync up. In that case, you might need to use the old EIN even if your W-2 shows the new one. Don't panic about the deadline - you have until the actual due date to get it accepted, and even if you're a bit late, the penalties for filing late are usually pretty minimal if you're getting a refund (which most people are). The IRS is generally understanding about technical difficulties during tax season.

Speaking from experience as someone who had a large amended return held up for 8 months - you need to get a Tax Advocate immediately. Like others mentioned, you'll need to document financial hardship. In your case, that's the medical bills and loan. Make sure to specify the exact amount of interest you're paying each month because of this delay. Have you checked your IRS transcript online? Sometimes there's info there that doesn't show up on Where's My Amended Return.

I'm so sorry you're going through this - the stress of waiting for such a large refund while dealing with medical expenses must be overwhelming. Based on what others have shared here, I'd definitely recommend trying multiple approaches at once rather than waiting for one to work. First, definitely check your IRS transcript online like Leeann suggested - sometimes there's movement there that doesn't show up anywhere else, or you might discover they sent correspondence you never received. Second, I'd strongly encourage you to contact the Taxpayer Advocate Service immediately. Your situation with medical bills and the high-interest loan absolutely qualifies as financial hardship. When you call, have specific numbers ready - exactly how much you're paying in interest each month because of this delay, your monthly medical expenses, etc. Third, consider reaching out to your congressional representative's office. Many people don't realize their representatives have staff specifically to help with federal agency issues like this. A congressional inquiry can sometimes move things faster than other methods. Given the amount involved ($120k), this isn't just about paperwork delays - this is seriously impacting your financial stability and health. Don't feel bad about being persistent and using every tool available. You've already waited far longer than reasonable, and you deserve to get this resolved. Keep us updated on what works - your experience could really help others in similar situations!

Beware that some of these social casinos operate in legal gray areas. If the site isn't properly licensed for gambling in your jurisdiction, there could be additional complications beyond just tax issues.

One thing to keep in mind is timing - you'll want to report the Bitcoin winnings as income for the tax year when you actually received them, not when you won the play coins. So if you won the coins in December 2024 but didn't convert them to Bitcoin until January 2025, that would be 2025 income. Also, make sure to keep records of the exact date and Bitcoin price when you received the payout, since that establishes both your taxable income amount and your cost basis for any future sales. The social casino should have transaction records you can reference, but don't rely on them to provide tax documents - most of these platforms don't issue proper gambling forms like traditional casinos do.

Has anyone successfully used TurboTax for reporting futures trading correctly? My trades aren't that complicated and I'm wondering if I can just do it myself instead of dealing with CPAs who don't understand Form 6781.

I went through almost the exact same situation last year with my CPA getting Form 6781 completely wrong. After wasting weeks trying to get them to understand Section 1256 treatment, I finally just switched to a new tax professional who specializes in active trader taxation. The difference was night and day - the new CPA immediately recognized the issues, correctly applied the 60/40 split, and saved me over $6,000 in taxes compared to what my old CPA had calculated. Don't let your current CPA's ego cost you money - if they're not willing to admit they made a mistake on something this fundamental, find someone who actually knows futures taxation. You might also want to double-check if they made similar errors in previous years' returns. I discovered my old CPA had been incorrectly reporting my futures trades for 2 years, so I had to file amended returns to get my refunds. The clock is ticking though - you generally only have 3 years to amend and claim refunds for overpaid taxes.