Tax Refund / IRS question
 

So, new to the whole US tax thing...

I filed our taxes electronically on 16 Feb 2011, using Turbo Tax. All was reported as peachy...

Having arrived in Nov 2010, it turns out that all the tax we paid was due to be refunded - our income was a little below the standard deductions etc.

I got a letter from the IRS saying they were going to review the refund request, and that we didn't need to do anything at that time. This was dated 2 March.

Well, it's now 23 May 2011 - and we're still waiting.

Is this normal?

Cheers

HTS

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

They're often fairly good and quick with this sort of stuff, but it can take a while, if you don't hear back within 3 months, definitely chase it up...but they probably didn't start looking into this kind of stuff till after the submission deadline for audits.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

That is not normal. Usually the refund is in about 2 weeks after you file early and the IRS doesn't audit returns until about 2 years later.

I suspect that because you were a US resident for only a partial year, they want to make sure that no tax is owed. They may want to determine if you were supposed to file as a non resident.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

Turbo Tax does specifically ask if you are non resident (i.e. no GC/USC) and when you entered the country etc...

Apparently the IRS this year is reviewing (not auditing?!) every return where a refund has been requested... apparently...

Thanks for the responses so far. I've written to them today - let's see which comes first - refund or response to my letter about the refund!

Cheers

HTS

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

This was our first year filing and we got a refund within 4 weeks with no problems, we did it through H&R Block because we didn't have SSN for me and the kids but next year, we'll probably attempt it ourselves. Hope you get it sorted out :fingerscrossed:

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

We filed about when you did and our refund arrived about 5 weeks later. No mention of any audits.

https://sa1.www4.irs.gov/irfof/lang/...fgetstatus.jsp

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

We used Turbo Tax too, resulting in a nice refund which came through very quickly indeed.

The delay you are experiencing is not, in my experience, normal.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

We arrived in Oct 2010 and Pete Newton helped file our accounts for us, and we too are due a substantial refund.
We paper filed as we originally thought we would need to get ITIN numbers for the kids, but in the end filed without declaring them as dependants.

Anyway, no sign of a refund cheque for us yet.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

Mine is in "review" too, mine and a lot of other families who are using the adoption credit. :sneaky: I sent mine in in feb, still no money, just multiple copies of the same letters, latest one saying they will be done by mid June. :fingerscrossed: I get some money then.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

We use Pete too. He's great. www.doug-tax.com

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

I hope those of you waiting for refunds have now got them :fingerscrossed:

I wrote to the IRS around 26 May. I've not had a response - would I be wrong in thinking that's to be expected?

We've had no communication from the IRS since March. Not even to say they were still working on it...

Any ideas on what I can do to find out what's happening...?

Cheers

HTS

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

My refund arrived direct to my account on 2 June 2011. Thanks Pete!

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

Telephone them.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

Glad to hear!

The IRS is definitely selecting more returns for further review before the refund is processed. This usually involves checking the withholdings reported by the employer and means nothing more than a delay in the refund, with no action needed on the part of the taxpayer.

Re: Tax Refund / IRS question
 

Um, I have quite a low opinion of TurboTax, because on the invoice I got from Intuit for the corporate version they forgot to put their GST number on it and they're a Canadian company. Legally it's required.

My personal feeling is that you should at least do one return on paper and read the 1040 instructions so you understand the tax system and if you don't there are instructional videos on the IRS website.

If you're the average Joe Blow with a W-2 and 1099s then frankly a paper return is pretty easy and if you're not Joe Blow I would say your time talking to a proper accountant is well worth it. The IRS used to have classes as well, not sure if they still do.

Also read IRS publication 519, a lot of people in their first tax year should do a dual-status tax return, and I doubt TurboTax can do that.