Has anybody ever been audited for messing this up? My husband and I accidentally both contributed to dependent care FSAs at different jobs last year (about $4000 each) and I'm freaking out now reading this thread.

I'm a tax preparer and see this mistake ALL the time! Just to reinforce what others have said - the $5,000 dependent care FSA limit is definitely per household when you're married filing jointly, not per person. What I tell my clients is to think of it this way: the IRS doesn't care which spouse's employer plan you use or how you split it between accounts. They only care about the total household contribution not exceeding $5,000. One practical tip: if you do split contributions between both spouses' FSA accounts, make sure you coordinate your reimbursement claims carefully. You don't want to accidentally submit the same daycare receipt to both accounts for reimbursement - that would be claiming the same expense twice, which is definitely not allowed. Also, keep excellent records of all your childcare expenses throughout the year. You'll need them not just for FSA reimbursements, but also to properly calculate any additional tax credit you might be eligible for on the amounts above your FSA contributions.

Did you get an acceptance confirmation email from your state? Sometimes TurboTax says its transmitted but it actually failed

Had the exact same issue last month! Turns out my state return was never actually e-filed even though TurboTax showed it as complete. Had to manually check my state's tax website and refile directly through them. The state processing is completely separate from federal - SBTPG only handles federal refunds. Check your state tax agency's website directly and look for any error messages or missing submissions. You might need to refile your state return separately.

Have you tried just using the free fillable forms directly from the IRS? I spent hours comparing different calculators last year only to find they were all slightly off. When I just filled out the actual forms myself, I understood exactly where every number came from. Takes more time but gave me peace of mind that I wasn't missing anything the calculators might overlook.

As a tax preparer who's worked with both platforms extensively, I can tell you the discrepancy often comes down to how each system handles the ordering of deductions and credits. TurboTax tends to optimize the sequence of calculations to maximize refunds (applying certain deductions before others), while H&R Block follows a more linear approach that mirrors the actual IRS form sequence. For your specific situation with $19,200 SE income and 3 dependents, pay close attention to how each platform calculates your AGI before applying the Child Tax Credit. The SE tax deduction under IRC §164(f) should reduce your AGI by half of your SE tax ($1,356.50), which then affects your CTC eligibility. Small differences in how this flows through the calculation can create the variance you're seeing. I'd recommend printing the tax summary from both platforms and comparing line-by-line on Forms 1040, Schedule C, and Schedule SE to identify exactly where the numbers diverge.

Does anyone know if fileyourtaxes.com has a specific section for state teacher deductions? I found the federal one finally but my state (Illinois) has an additional credit that I can't figure out how to enter.

I went through this exact same frustration last year when I switched from TurboTax! Here's what helped me understand the educator expense deduction better: The key thing to remember is that this is for unreimbursed expenses you personally paid for classroom use. Keep it simple - classroom supplies, books, educational software, and basic equipment all count. The $300 limit means you don't need to stress about every single receipt if you spent more than that. For fileyourtaxes.com specifically, look for "Adjustments to Income" or "Above-the-Line Deductions" - it might not be in the main deductions section since this one reduces your adjusted gross income directly. Some sites bury it under "Educator Expenses" or "Teacher Deduction." One tip that saved me time: if you spent more than $300, just enter $300 and call it done. You don't need to calculate the exact amount down to the penny. And yes, keep those receipts organized for your records, but you're not submitting them with your return. The good news is once you find where to enter it on the site, it's literally just typing in one number. Much simpler than TurboTax made it seem!

I'm going through this exact same situation right now and this thread has been a lifesaver! Based on what I'm reading here, it sounds like the key is bypassing JH's regular customer service entirely. I'm planning to try the MetaBank route first since multiple people have had success with that approach. If that doesn't work, I'll use the specific terminology mentioned here - "Early Refund Advance loan payoff" and asking for "loan servicing department." It's honestly shocking how broken their repayment system is for what should be a straightforward transaction. I've been documenting every call attempt with dates and rep names, just in case this escalates to collections or credit reporting issues. Has anyone tried the CFPB complaint route mentioned by the tax preparer? I'm wondering if that might be worth doing proactively to create an official paper trail, especially since this seems to be such a widespread problem with their system.

This entire thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I work in financial services and see similar issues with third-party loan servicing all the time. A few things that might help beyond what's already been mentioned: 1) If you have any emails or paperwork from when you originally got the advance, look for a "loan servicer" disclosure - this will tell you exactly which bank is handling repayment. 2) When calling MetaBank or any financial institution, ask specifically for their "third-party tax advance department" - they usually have specialized reps for these products. 3) If you're still getting nowhere, consider reaching out to your state's banking commissioner or attorney general's office - they often have consumer protection divisions that can intervene with unresponsive financial institutions. 4) As a last resort, you might want to consult with a consumer attorney who specializes in fair debt collection practices - many offer free consultations and can send a letter that gets companies to respond quickly. The fact that JH is essentially forcing customers into potential default situations when they're actively trying to repay is really problematic from a regulatory standpoint.