The 570 code is definitely stressful but try not to panic! I went through this exact situation last tax season. Mine showed up around the same time frame (late January filing, 570 appeared in February) and it ended up being resolved in about 4-5 weeks. In my case, they were just doing routine income verification - apparently my employer filed their quarterly reports a bit late, so the IRS needed extra time to match everything up. I never had to send in any documents or take any action on my part. The key thing is to keep monitoring both your transcript AND your mailbox religiously. If they need something from you, they'll send a letter with specific instructions. But honestly, a lot of these 570 holds resolve automatically once their internal review is complete. Your refund amount ($3,400) isn't unusually high, and since you have a simple W-2 return, there's a good chance this is just a routine verification that will clear up soon. I know the waiting sucks when you have bills due, but hang in there! 💪

I'm going through the exact same thing right now! Filed on January 30th, got accepted same day, and now I'm seeing that dreaded 570 code on my transcript too. Mine also shows a February 2025 date which had me confused at first, but reading through these comments is making me feel a bit better. Like you, I have a super simple return - just W-2 income, standard deduction, no weird credits or anything. Was expecting about $2,800 back. It's so frustrating when you're counting on that money for bills and life expenses. I've been obsessively checking my transcript every day and watching the mailbox, but nothing yet. The waiting is absolutely killing me! At least now I know from the other comments that 2-8 weeks seems to be the normal timeframe and that a lot of these resolve on their own without needing to send in documents. Definitely going to keep monitoring everything closely. Hopefully we both get some movement soon! 🤞

Has anyone used TurboTax or H&R Block software for reporting foreign pensions? I'm wondering if they handle these situations well or if I need something more specialized.

I'm dealing with a similar situation with my Italian disability pension, and after reading through all these responses, I wanted to share what I learned from my tax attorney. The key thing that many people miss is that disability pensions from workplace injuries often have different treaty treatment than regular retirement pensions. Since your pension is classified as "rente d'invalidité professionnelle" (work-related disability), you'll likely need to use Form 8833 to claim treaty benefits under Article 18 of the US-France tax treaty. What I found helpful was getting the official French documentation that clearly states the nature and classification of your pension payments. The IRS will want to see that it's specifically a work-related disability benefit, not just a general pension. Also, definitely don't overlook the FBAR filing if your French accounts exceed $10,000. The penalties are no joke - I learned that the hard way when I missed filing for two years and had to go through the voluntary disclosure process. One more tip: keep detailed records of all French taxes paid on this income. You'll need those exact amounts for Form 1116 if any portion ends up being taxable in the US after applying treaty provisions.

Just a heads up, if your kiddo is 13, you might qualify for the Additional Child Tax Credit too which is refundable (meaning you can get money back even if you don't owe taxes). Make sure whoever does your taxes checks for this!!!

I'm really glad you found this community to ask for help! As someone who's also navigated single parenthood and tax issues, I wanted to add a few practical tips that might help you get organized: Since you're dealing with cash income, start keeping a simple daily log RIGHT NOW - even if it's just a notebook where you write the date, client name, amount earned, and any expenses like gas or supplies. This will make next year's taxes so much easier. For this year's filing, try to gather whatever documentation you can - text messages confirming jobs, any Venmo/CashApp records if clients ever paid that way, even old calendar entries showing when you worked. The IRS understands that cash-based workers don't always have perfect records, but showing you made a good faith effort to document your income goes a long way. Also, don't forget about potential deductions beyond what others mentioned - work clothes that get ruined from cleaning chemicals, any equipment you bought (vacuum, cleaning caddy, etc.), and even a portion of your cell phone bill if you use it to coordinate with clients. Every legitimate deduction reduces your self-employment tax burden. You've got this! Single parents are incredibly resourceful, and getting your taxes sorted properly is going to make such a difference for your financial stability.

Am I the only one who thinks it's completely ridiculous that we have to jump through all these hoops just to save for retirement? Like why does the backdoor Roth even exist? Why not just let people contribute directly to Roth IRAs without income limits? And then on top of that, every state has different rules?! I moved from Washington (no state income tax) to Oregon last year and suddenly my backdoor Roth conversion cost me an extra $600 in state taxes. Absolute madness.

This is exactly why I always recommend double-checking your state's specific rules each year, even if nothing seems to have changed in your situation. State tax laws around retirement accounts are constantly evolving, and sometimes the changes aren't well-publicized. One thing that might help is to pull your Form 8606 from both years and compare them line by line. Look specifically at Part I (lines 1-18) which deals with nondeductible contributions and conversions. If there's a difference in how your basis was calculated or reported between years, that could explain the state tax discrepancy. Also worth noting - some states have "conformity" issues where they don't automatically adopt federal tax changes or interpretations. So even if the federal treatment of your backdoor Roth was identical both years, your state might have changed how they handle it independently. The fact that others in this thread found actual policy changes in their states suggests this might be more common than we realize.

Just want to add something important - if you're claiming the Child Tax Credit with no income, make sure your child has lived with you for more than half the year (183 days). The IRS is really strict about this requirement, and it's one of the things they check carefully since this credit is frequently claimed incorrectly. Also, your child needs to be under 17 at the end of the tax year to qualify. If they turned 17 during 2023, unfortunately you can't claim the Child Tax Credit for them for that year.

I did this exact thing last year! Filed with zero income as a disabled parent and still got $1,500 for my daughter through the Additional Child Tax Credit. Used the free version of TaxAct to file. Just make sure to complete Schedule 8812 along with your 1040 - that's where you calculate the refundable portion. One thing nobody mentioned yet - your qualifying child must also not provide more than half of their own support. Shouldn't be an issue for young kids, but something to keep in mind if you have an older teen who might have had some income of their own.