Just to clarify what others have said - Jackson Hewitt currently uses Republic Bank & Trust Company for their refund transfers, not MetaBank/Pathward as they did in previous years. The change happened in 2022. When comparing to other tax preparers, H&R Block uses Axos Bank and TurboTax uses Green Dot Bank for their refund transfers. Each bank has different processing timelines, with Republic typically taking 1-3 business days after receiving the funds from the Treasury.

I went through this exact same situation last year! After reading through everyone's experiences here, I can confirm that Republic Bank & Trust is indeed Jackson Hewitt's current partner for refund transfers. What helped me was calling Republic Bank directly rather than going through Jackson Hewitt's customer service - their tax services department was much more responsive and could actually tell me when they received my refund from the IRS. The key thing to remember is that once your WMR shows "approved," there's still that 1-3 day processing window at Republic Bank before it hits your actual account. It's frustrating but seems to be the standard timeline. Has your WMR status updated to approved yet, or are you still waiting for that step?

Does anyone know if TurboTax handles this stuff correctly? Will it guide me through the business expense deductions separate from the itemized vs standard deduction question?

This is such a common source of confusion! I went through the exact same thing when I started freelancing. The key insight that finally clicked for me is that business expenses and personal deductions live in completely different worlds on your tax return. Think of it this way: your business expenses on Schedule C reduce your business profit before you even get to the personal tax calculation. So if you made $50,000 from your side gig but had $15,000 in legitimate business expenses, you'd only pay taxes on $35,000 of business income. THEN, for your personal taxes, you get to choose between the standard deduction ($13,850 for 2025) or itemizing personal things like mortgage interest, state taxes, charitable donations, etc. This choice is completely separate from what you already deducted for business. So you're absolutely right to take business deductions AND the standard deduction if that's what works best for you. It's not double-dipping at all - it's exactly how the tax system is designed to work! The IRS wants you to only pay tax on your actual business profit, and they also want to give you a basic deduction for personal expenses.

Don't overlook the importance of addressing state taxes too! Many people focus only on federal tax delinquency and forget that state tax authorities can be equally aggressive in collections.

I want to echo what others have said about not panicking - you're taking the right step by addressing this now. As someone who works in tax resolution, I see situations like yours regularly, and they are absolutely manageable. One thing I'd add to the excellent advice already given: when you do start working with a tax professional, make sure they explain the "substitute for return" (SFR) process to you. If the IRS has been filing returns on your behalf for some of the missing years (using only the income they know about with no deductions), you'll want to file proper returns to claim any deductions you're entitled to and potentially reduce what you owe. Also, don't be surprised if your actual tax liability ends up being less scary than you're imagining. Many independent contractors significantly overestimate what they'll owe because they forget about legitimate business deductions - home office expenses, equipment, professional development, travel, etc. The key is to be thorough and honest in your reconstruction of those missing years. Your future self will thank you for taking action now rather than letting this drag on any longer.

I dealt with this exact same code 6657 penalty situation last year and successfully got it removed! Here's what I learned: **Most important tip**: Request abatement under BOTH "reasonable cause" AND "First Time Penalty Abatement" if you qualify. Many people don't realize you can use both arguments in the same letter. **For your letter, include**: - Clear statement that you're requesting abatement of IRC Section 6657 penalty - Explanation that payment was properly set up through TurboTax with sufficient funds - Bank statement showing available balance on the scheduled payment date - Copy of your TurboTax payment confirmation/screenshot - Statement that the same account worked when you paid manually later **Key phrase to use**: "The payment failure was due to circumstances beyond my control and not due to willful neglect or intentional disregard of tax obligations." **Important**: Send to the correspondence address on your CP14 notice (usually in the upper right corner), NOT the payment address. Use certified mail with return receipt. The whole process took about 45 days for me, and I got the full $235 penalty refunded plus interest. Don't give up - these technical payment failures are often the IRS system's fault, not yours. You have a strong case for abatement!

I went through almost the identical situation last year! The IRS direct debit system definitely has technical glitches that aren't the taxpayer's fault. Here's my step-by-step approach that worked: **For your abatement letter, include these key elements:** - Your personal info (name, SSN, address, tax year 2023) - CP14 notice number and date - Specific request for "abatement of Internal Revenue Code Section 6657 penalty" - Clear explanation that you had sufficient funds and payment was properly set up through TurboTax - Attach bank statement showing available balance on the scheduled payment date - Include TurboTax payment setup confirmation/screenshot - Emphasize that the same account worked when you paid manually afterward **Critical language to use:** Request abatement under "reasonable cause due to circumstances beyond my control" AND mention "First Time Penalty Abatement" if you've had clean compliance for the past 3 years. **Logistics:** Send to the correspondence address on your CP14 (not the payment address), use certified mail with return receipt requested. The fact that your bank account had sufficient funds and the payment worked later strongly supports that this was a system error, not your fault. I got my $190 penalty completely removed in about 6 weeks using this exact approach. Don't pay the penalty upfront unless you're worried about interest - if they approve abatement, you'll avoid the penalty entirely. Good luck! This is definitely worth fighting since it wasn't due to your error.

A warning from someone who got this wrong: Make absolutely sure your employer is adding imputed income correctly. Mine wasn't, and I got a CP2000 notice two years later saying I owed $3,200 in back taxes plus penalties because the value of my partner's health benefits should have been included in my taxable income. Even though it was my employer's mistake in not reporting it properly, the IRS held ME responsible as the taxpayer. They said I should have known the rules and reported the additional income on my return regardless of what my W-2 showed. I ended up having to pay the full amount plus interest. Don't make my mistake - verify everything is being handled correctly now, not when the IRS comes knocking.

This is exactly the kind of complex situation where getting expert guidance upfront can save you major headaches later. Based on what everyone's shared here, it sounds like you have two separate issues to address: 1. **Immediate action needed**: Contact your HR/benefits department with specific questions about imputed income reporting. Ask them directly: "Are you adding the employer's contribution toward my domestic partner's health coverage as imputed income on my W-2?" Don't let them give you a vague answer - this needs to be crystal clear. 2. **Documentation**: Get everything in writing from your benefits department about how they're handling the tax treatment. As Caleb mentioned, if they're doing it wrong, you're still ultimately responsible to the IRS. Your understanding is mostly correct - health insurance "dependents" and tax "dependents" do follow different rules. But the key issue is that employer contributions for non-tax dependents typically must be reported as taxable income to you. Given that your partner earns $15K annually, they definitely can't qualify as your tax dependent regardless of the support you provide. The 2025 threshold is around $5,000, so you're well above that limit. I'd strongly recommend getting this clarified before year-end so any corrections can be made to your current year W-2 rather than dealing with amendments and potential penalties later.