I'm going through this exact same situation right now! My transcript shows code 846 with a refund issue date of 3 days ago, but still nothing in my account. Called my credit union thinking it was on their end, but they confirmed no pending deposits from the IRS or anyone else. Then I found out about SBTPG being the middleman since I had TurboTax deduct their fees from my refund. It's so frustrating that they don't make this clear upfront - I had no idea my refund would go through a third party that could delay it for days. Next year I'm definitely paying the prep fees upfront to avoid this whole mess. Has anyone had success getting SBTPG to expedite for urgent situations like medical bills?

This is exactly why I switched to FreeTaxUSA after dealing with SBTPG delays for 3 years straight. Even when you pay their prep fees upfront instead of deducting from refund, you still get professional-level software at a fraction of TurboTax's cost. My refunds now come directly from the IRS in 1-2 days instead of waiting a week for SBTPG to "process" my own money. The difference is night and day - last year my direct IRS deposit hit on a Wednesday morning, while my friend who used TurboTax with fee deduction didn't get hers until the following Monday. It's worth the small upfront cost to avoid these middleman delays, especially when you have urgent expenses like medical bills.

Just to add another perspective - I had a similar situation where I was receiving regular Venmo payments from my roommates for shared expenses (rent, utilities, groceries) totaling about $15,000 over the year. I was initially worried about tax implications too. What helped me was keeping a simple spreadsheet tracking what each payment was for, along with the original receipts or bills. This way I had clear documentation that these weren't income-generating activities, just cost-sharing among friends. The Venmo transaction notes are helpful, but having the underlying documentation (like the actual rent bill or utility statement) gives you even stronger proof that these were legitimate reimbursements. The peace of mind is worth the small effort of organizing your records. Plus, if you ever do get questioned, you'll have everything ready to show these were just friends helping each other out financially, not unreported income.

This is such a common worry that I see all the time! You're absolutely right not to stress about this - friend-to-friend reimbursements like what you're describing are definitely not taxable income. The IRS distinguishes between actual income (where you're making money) and reimbursements (where you're just getting back money you already spent). The fact that your transactions are marked as "friends" and have clear notes like "car help" and "paying you back" actually works in your favor. These notes serve as documentation that these aren't business transactions or income-generating activities. Even though the total amount seems large at $10,500, remember that this isn't new money coming to you - it's just your own money being returned after you helped your friend out. You didn't profit from these transactions, so there's no taxable event. Keep those Venmo records with the transaction notes as backup documentation, but you shouldn't need to report any of this as income on your taxes. The new payment app reporting rules are really targeting people who are running businesses through these platforms and not reporting that income, not friends helping each other out financially.

Pro tip: check your transcript early morning on Wednesdays and Fridays. That's when they usually update the system with new info.

This is totally normal! The "RETURN NOT PRESENT" message you're seeing just means your return is still in the processing pipeline and hasn't been fully entered into their system yet. At 3 weeks post-filing, you're still well within the standard processing timeframe. Those $0.00 balances across the board are essentially placeholder values - think of them as the system's "default state" before your actual return data gets processed and populated. Once the IRS completes processing your return, you'll see all those blank fields fill in with your actual AGI, taxable income, tax amounts, etc. The fact that your filing status shows correctly as "Head of Household" is actually a good sign - it means they've at least received and begun initial processing of your return. You should start seeing real data populate in your transcript within the next 1-2 weeks, and if you're due a refund, the "Where's My Refund" tool will update shortly after that. No need to panic - this is exactly what most transcripts look like during the processing phase!

Been thru this exact mess last yr. Got 4 diff answers from IRS ppl. Here's what worked: I went to my local IRS office (had to make appt online first) and brought ALL my docs - ID, SSN card, tax return copy, etc. The lady there was super helpful and could see everything in their system. Turns out I DID need to verify but the letter was stuck in some queue. She verified me right there in the office and my refund was DD'd exactly 9 days later. No more waiting for letters or calling the 800 number. Sometimes ya just gotta show up in person to get the real deal info.

This is such a common frustration this year! I went through something similar - filed early February and kept getting told different things every time I called. What I learned is that the IRS has multiple computer systems that don't always talk to each other properly, especially during peak filing season. The contradictory information about the February 3rd letter is a perfect example of this. One system might show a letter was "generated" on that date, but it could still be sitting in a queue waiting to actually be printed and mailed. Meanwhile, other agents looking at different systems won't see that letter at all. My advice: Keep calling every few days and ask to speak with someone who can see your complete account history. Also try accessing your IRS online account or getting your transcript - sometimes you'll see codes there (like TC 971) that confirm what's really happening with your return before the agents can even tell you. The verification issues are definitely real this year, but the mixed messages make it so much worse than it needs to be!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now! Filed my 2023 return in early March and seeing that same confusing "RETURN NOT PRESENT" message while it also shows my Head of Household status. It's been driving me crazy trying to figure out what's going on. Reading through all these responses has been super helpful though. Sounds like this is just the IRS being the IRS - received our returns but haven't actually processed them yet. The fact that so many people are experiencing the same thing makes me feel a lot better about it. I'm going to try to stop checking my transcript every other day and just wait it out for a few more weeks. If nothing changes by mid-May, I'll look into calling them or using one of those services people mentioned to get through to an actual agent. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it's reassuring to know this is normal (even if it's frustrating)!

I completely understand your frustration! I went through this exact same situation last year and it drove me absolutely crazy. That "RETURN NOT PRESENT" message is so misleading - it really should say something like "PROCESSING IN PROGRESS" instead. What you're seeing is totally normal, unfortunately. Your return was accepted (hence the confirmation from TurboTax) and is sitting in their processing queue, but the IRS systems show it as "not present" until they actually assign it to someone for review. The Head of Household status you're seeing is likely carried over from your 2022 return that's still in their system. Since you filed in February and it's now April, you're right around that 8-10 week mark that's become standard this year. The IRS is massively backlogged - I read they had over 20 million unprocessed returns as of last month. If you claimed the Earned Income Credit like you mentioned, that automatically adds extra processing time due to fraud prevention requirements. My advice: try to hang in there for another 2-3 weeks before panicking. Check your transcript weekly instead of daily (I know, easier said than done when you're expecting a refund). If you don't see any movement by early May, then definitely call them. The "Where's My Refund" tool might show more current info than the transcript sometimes too. You're definitely not alone in this - seems like half the country is dealing with the same confusing message right now!