14 I went through something similar with money my grandma had hidden in her house. One thing that helped me was getting a letter from my family members acknowledging they were aware of the cash and understood it was intended for me. It wasn't legally binding or anything, but it helped establish the story when I talked to the bank and later when I had questions from the IRS. Would your parents or other family members be willing to write something confirming your grandpa's verbal wishes? Might help smooth things over.

I'm a tax professional and wanted to add some important points to this discussion. First, you're correct that inheritances are generally not taxable income to the recipient, but the key word here is "generally." Since this cash wasn't formally documented as part of your grandfather's estate, you may need to treat it differently for tax purposes. The IRS looks at three main factors: 1) Was there donative intent by the deceased? 2) Was the property actually transferred? 3) Did the recipient accept it as a gift/inheritance? The verbal statements to your parents help establish intent, but you'll want to document this thoroughly. Also, keep in mind that while banks report cash deposits over $10k, they can also file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) for any transaction they find unusual, regardless of amount. Being prepared with proper documentation about the source will help avoid complications. I'd strongly recommend consulting with both a tax attorney and an estate attorney before making the deposit. The small cost upfront could save you significant issues later if the IRS has questions about the sudden appearance of this money in your accounts.

I went through this exact same situation last year with a CP81 notice showing a $3,200 credit, and I was just as confused as you are now! After reading through all these helpful responses and dealing with it myself, I can confirm that the credit amount is almost certainly legitimate. What I discovered is that the IRS receives your W-2 and 1099 information directly from employers and financial institutions throughout the year, completely separate from when you file your actual tax return. So they can have records of all your tax withholdings (which creates the credit balance) even if your return gets lost, rejected, or stuck in processing. In my case, my TurboTax e-file was actually rejected due to an incorrect prior year AGI, but I never saw the rejection notice. TurboTax showed it as "submitted" but the IRS never accepted it. I only found out when I called them directly. My suggestion is to start by checking your TurboTax account thoroughly for any rejection notices you might have missed, then create an IRS online account to view your transcripts. The "Wage and Income Transcript" will show you exactly what withholding information they have on file, which should match that $4,177 amount. Don't stress too much about this - it's a common issue and that money is definitely yours! You just need to get your 2021 return properly processed by the IRS.

I've been lurking on this sub for a while but had to jump in because I literally just resolved this exact same issue last week! Got a CP81 notice back in February showing a $2,890 credit with the same "we don't have your return" message. Like everyone else here, I was totally confused because I distinctly remember e-filing through FreeTaxUSA and getting confirmation emails. After reading similar threads and trying the suggestions people mentioned, here's what actually worked: First, I checked my filing software account and found a rejection notice buried in an obscure "messages" section that I had completely missed. My return was rejected because I fat-fingered my prior year AGI by one digit. The software showed "submitted" but never actually made it through to the IRS. Second, I created the IRS online account everyone keeps mentioning and pulled my wage transcript. Sure enough, it showed my exact W-2 withholding amounts that matched the credit in the notice - so I knew the money was real. The whole process from refiling to getting my refund took about 4 weeks once I corrected the AGI error. The relief when that direct deposit finally hit was incredible! For anyone dealing with this - don't panic, check your tax software for hidden rejection messages, and definitely create that IRS account to verify what they have on file. That credit is YOUR money waiting to come home!

Head of Household is definitely wrong if ur married and living together. It's meant for single parents or people supporting relatives. You probably want "Married filing jointly" on ur actual tax return, but for W4 withholding purposes, you might want "Married but withhold at higher rate" to avoid owing money.

Based on your situation with significantly higher income than your husband and his unpredictable consulting income, I'd definitely recommend switching from "Head of Household" to "Married" status on your W4. As others mentioned, HoH isn't available for married couples living together. Given the income disparity and uncertainty around your husband's business income, "Married but withhold at higher Single rate" is probably your best bet. This will withhold more tax from your paychecks than regular "Married" status, helping you avoid a big tax bill next April. You might also want to consider using the Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs Worksheet that comes with the W4 form - it's designed exactly for situations like yours where there's uneven income between spouses. And remember, you can always adjust your W4 throughout the year as your husband's business income becomes clearer. It's better to have a little too much withheld and get a refund than to owe thousands at tax time!

This has been such a valuable discussion! I went through this exact routing number confusion with my Chase account last year. One thing I learned that might help others - if you're still unsure after checking all the sources mentioned here, you can actually do a test with a small amount first. Some people don't know this, but you can set up a small direct deposit from your employer or even transfer a few dollars from another account to verify that your routing and account numbers work correctly with the ACH system. This way, if there's an issue, you'll find out with a small test transaction rather than your entire tax refund. Also, for anyone using mobile banking apps - most major banks now have a specific "Tax Refund" or "Direct Deposit Info" section in their apps that shows exactly the routing and account numbers formatted for tax purposes. I found this in my Chase app under "Account Details" and it explicitly said "Use this routing number for tax refunds and direct deposits." Really takes the guesswork out of it! The peace of mind is definitely worth the extra few minutes to verify everything is correct before filing.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm new to this community and just went through filing my taxes for the first time as an independent adult. The routing number confusion is so real - I spent way too long on my credit union's website trying to figure out which number to use. What really helped me was calling my credit union directly and specifically asking for "the routing number I should use for IRS direct deposit." The representative immediately knew what I needed and even double-checked my account number format to make sure everything would process correctly. One thing I'd add for other newcomers - if you're using a smaller bank or credit union, they're usually really helpful with this stuff since they deal with fewer customers. Don't be afraid to call and ask! The customer service rep I spoke with said they get tons of calls about this every tax season, so it's definitely not a dumb question. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences here - it's reassuring to know that even experienced filers have run into these same issues!

Are you guys using the standard online tax calculators to figure this out? I've used the IRS withholding calculator and it still seems like my checks are way off from what it predicts.

I work in payroll and see this confusion all the time! Your paycheck withholdings are based on an annualized calculation - meaning your payroll system assumes you'll earn that same amount every pay period for the whole year. So when you have a big overtime week, it withholds taxes as if you'll make that inflated amount all year long. Here's a simple example: if your regular biweekly pay is $3,300 ($41.25 x 80 hours), your system calculates annual withholding based on $85,800/year. But if you work overtime and earn $5,000 in one check, it suddenly thinks you're making $130,000/year and withholds accordingly. The key thing to remember is that this is just withholding - not your actual tax liability. When you file your return, you'll likely get a refund for the overwithholding. To minimize this, you could adjust your W-4 to account for the extra withholding on overtime checks, but be careful not to underwithhold if your overtime isn't consistent. Bottom line: every overtime hour you work still puts more money in your pocket eventually, even if it doesn't feel like it on that particular paycheck.