I've been reading through this entire thread and want to add some additional perspective on the financial disability exception that might be helpful. While major depression can qualify, the key is having your physician specifically document that the condition prevented you from managing your financial affairs during the relevant period. I work in tax resolution and have seen successful financial disability claims where the physician's statement included specific language about the patient's inability to handle complex financial decisions, difficulty with paperwork and deadlines, and cognitive impacts that affected their capacity to understand tax obligations. Generic treatment records usually aren't sufficient - you need a targeted statement from your treating physician. Also, don't overlook the "equitable tolling" possibilities mentioned earlier. Given your international assignment and the complexity of coordinating between US and Japanese tax obligations, if you can document that you received conflicting or incomplete guidance about your filing requirements, this could strengthen your case beyond just the health issues alone. One practical suggestion: consider filing Form 843 (Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement) even if you're not 100% certain about qualifying for an exception. The IRS will review your specific circumstances, and sometimes they identify relief options that weren't immediately obvious. The worst they can do is deny it, but you might be surprised at their flexibility when there are genuine extenuating circumstances like yours. The combination of your depression diagnosis, international tax complexity, and pandemic timing really does create a unique situation that goes beyond typical "I forgot to file" scenarios.

I'm in a somewhat similar situation and wanted to share what I learned from consulting with a tax attorney who specializes in international cases. One thing that hasn't been fully discussed is the concept of "protective claims" - if you're unsure whether you qualify for the financial disability exception, you can file Form 843 as a protective claim to preserve your right to the refund while you gather additional documentation. The attorney also mentioned that for international tax situations like yours, the IRS sometimes applies a "facts and circumstances" test when multiple exceptions might apply. Your case has several compelling elements: documented mental health issues during the critical period, international tax complexity, employer-provided guidance about filing requirements, and the pandemic disruption right when you returned to the US. Another angle worth exploring - if your Tokyo employer or the consulting firm provided any tax equalization benefits or made payments to cover your US tax obligations, this could affect both your 2019 refund calculation and your 2020 tax liability. These arrangements sometimes create timing differences that aren't immediately apparent but can be significant when you're dealing with statute of limitations issues. I'd recommend getting those account transcripts as soon as possible to see exactly what the IRS has on record. Sometimes they have information about foreign employer reporting or treaty elections that can change the entire calculation. Given the amounts involved ($14K refund vs $17.5K owed), it's definitely worth pursuing every possible avenue before accepting that the refund is lost.

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.

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.