My advice - definitely file the amended return with Form 982! I paid taxes on a $12k forgiven debt because I didn't know about Form 982, and it cost me almost $2,000 in taxes. A year later I learned about insolvency exclusion and filed an amended return. Not only did I get my money back, but the IRS paid interest on the refund! The whole process took about 12 weeks from mailing to getting my refund. Just make sure you send it certified mail so you have proof of when you submitted it.

Just wanted to add one important point that I learned the hard way - make sure you keep detailed records of your assets and debts from the time your debt was forgiven! The IRS can ask for documentation to support your insolvency claim. I had to recreate my financial picture from 2 years ago, which meant digging through old bank statements, credit reports, and even getting a letter from my landlord about what I owed in back rent. It was a pain, but totally worth it when I got my refund. Pro tip: if you're missing some documentation, you can often get old statements from your banks and creditors. Credit reports from that time period can also help establish what debts you had. The more documentation you have to back up your insolvency calculation, the smoother the process will go!

You might want to specifically ask your preparer if they're going to e-file or mail your return. Most do e-file these days, but some smaller preparers still mail paper returns. If they're mailing, you'd need to know if they're mailing it for you or if YOU need to mail it yourself after signing (which happens sometimes). Not trying to add to your stress, just something worth clarifying!

Don't feel dumb about asking this - it's actually a really smart question! Your preparer definitely hasn't filed yet. What they sent you is your completed return for review and approval. This is exactly how it should work - any reputable preparer will have you review everything before they submit it to the IRS. Take your time going through the forms. Check that your personal info is correct, your income matches your documents, and if you have any deductions or credits, make sure those look right too. Once you're satisfied and you sign the authorization (probably Form 8879), THEN they'll file it electronically. It sounds like you found a good preparer who follows proper procedures. The fact that they want your approval before filing shows they're doing things the right way. After last year's issues, this professional approach should give you much more confidence in your return!

DO NOT IGNORE THIS! Document everything NOW. My ex did this to me and because I didn't respond quickly enough with the right documentation, it created a 2-year nightmare with the IRS. Print out all text messages where you told him not to claim them. Make copies of your court order. Get documentation from the school showing your address as their residence. The most important thing is filing Form 8332 showing you DID NOT release your claim to the children. Even though your return was accepted, his paper-filed return could still cause problems.

I went through this exact scenario two years ago. Your court order is your strongest protection here - the IRS follows legal custody arrangements, not just who pays support. Since you filed first and were accepted, you're in good position. A few practical tips from my experience: - Keep screenshots of those text messages where you explicitly told him not to claim them - If he does try to file, his e-file will likely be rejected immediately due to duplicate SSNs - If he paper files to try to bypass the system, it'll get caught during processing but may take longer to resolve The "tax preparers" he consulted either don't understand custody law or he's misrepresenting what they told him. Paying child support doesn't override a court order that specifically grants you the right to claim the children. Stay calm and document everything, but don't let him pressure you into "releasing" your claim. You have every legal right to claim your kids based on both custody time (more than half the year) and your court order.

Something nobody mentioned yet - the W-9 is also used for certain financial accounts! I had to fill one out when I opened a high-yield savings account last month because they needed to verify my taxpayer status. Banks and investment companies use them to confirm your tax info and determine if they need to withhold any taxes from interest or dividends they pay you.

Great question! As someone who was completely lost about tax forms when I started freelancing, I totally understand the confusion. Here's the simplest way I think about W-9s: It's basically your way of saying "Hey, I'm a real person with a real Social Security Number, and if you pay me more than $600 this year, you'll need to send both me and the IRS a 1099 form at tax time." The key thing that helped me understand it was realizing that W-9s are ONLY for contractor/freelance work, never for regular employee jobs. If your cousin's construction business is hiring you as an independent contractor (sounds like it since it's weekend/side work), then yes, you'll need to fill out a W-9. One heads up - since you won't have taxes automatically withheld like at a regular job, make sure to set aside about 25-30% of whatever he pays you for taxes. I learned this the hard way my first year! And definitely keep a copy. I keep mine in a folder labeled "Tax Stuff" so I can remember who has my info when 1099s start arriving in January.

This is SO frustrating! I had a similar issue two years ago where my account number got changed somehow during processing. The IRS tried to deposit to the wrong account, it got rejected, and then I had to wait almost 6 weeks for the paper check to arrive. One thing that really helped me was checking my tax transcript regularly - it shows the exact timeline of what's happening with your refund. Look for code 846 (refund issued) followed by code 841 (refund cancelled/rejected) - that confirms the direct deposit failed and they're switching to paper check. The waiting is the worst part, especially when you need the money for unexpected expenses. But at least once they switch to paper check mode, it usually arrives within 3-4 weeks. Hang in there! 💪

This exact same thing happened to me last year! I was absolutely panicking when I saw different account numbers on the Where's My Refund tool. Turns out it was because I used TurboTax's "pay with refund" option - they create a temporary bank account to collect their fees first, then forward the rest to you. The account numbers looked completely different from mine, which scared me at first. But I eventually got my refund via direct deposit after TurboTax took their cut. Check your TurboTax account or confirmation emails - there should be details about the "Refund Transfer" service if that's what happened. If it's NOT the TurboTax thing, then yeah, you're probably looking at a paper check situation. When my sister had a legitimate banking error on her return, she waited about 5 weeks for the paper check to arrive. The IRS tries the direct deposit once, and if it fails, they automatically switch to mailing a check to your address on file. Either way, definitely check your tax transcript on the IRS website - it'll show you exactly what's happening with codes like 846 (refund issued) and 841 (refund rejected). Hope this helps ease some of your stress!