3 Does anyone know if donating stuff instead of money makes any difference tax-wise? I have a bunch of clothes and furniture I could donate to Goodwill instead of giving cash to charities.

One thing to consider is using a donor-advised fund (DAF) if you're planning to give regularly. You can contribute a larger lump sum to the DAF in a year when you itemize (like if you have higher medical expenses or other deductions), get the immediate tax deduction, then distribute the funds to your chosen charities over multiple years. For example, you could contribute $3,000-4,000 to a DAF in a year when itemizing makes sense, then recommend grants of $1,300 annually to your preferred charities. This gives you more control over the timing of your tax deduction while still supporting the causes you care about consistently. Many brokerage firms like Fidelity, Vanguard, and Schwab offer DAFs with low minimum contributions and fees. Just another strategy to consider as your giving grows over time!

I'd recommend attaching Form 433-F (Collection Information Statement) along with your 9465 if you're requesting a payment plan for a larger amount or if you can't afford what would normally be the minimum payment. This form shows your income, expenses, assets, and debts. It's extra paperwork but it helps prove to the IRS what you can actually afford to pay each month and increases your chances of getting approved for lower monthly payments if you're truly in a financial hardship situation.

One thing I wish someone had told me when I filled out my Form 9465 is to double-check your Social Security Number and the tax year you're requesting the installment agreement for. I made a simple typo in my SSN and it delayed my application by weeks while they tried to match it to my account. Also, if you're married filing jointly, make sure you're clear about whether both spouses are requesting the installment agreement or just one of you. This was confusing for me since my spouse and I file jointly but only I was responsible for the additional tax owed. The IRS website has a payment estimator tool that can help you figure out what monthly payment amount to propose, but honestly the explanations here about the 72-month rule and adding buffer for interest are really helpful. Good luck with your application!

Thanks everyone for the detailed responses! This is incredibly helpful. I've been checking sporadically throughout the day but clearly I need to adjust my strategy to those early morning hours. @Ethan Taylor - your documentation is amazing, that level of detail gives me confidence there's actually a predictable pattern here. I'll start checking consistently between 1-3am ET starting tonight. One follow-up question: once the transcript does update, how quickly do you typically see the actual refund hit your bank account? I'm hoping to time some bill payments around the deposit.

I've been tracking this for years and want to add some nuance to the excellent advice already shared. While the 12am-3am ET window is accurate, I've noticed that identity verification cases often follow a slightly different pattern. After verification, your transcript may show what's called a "processing hold" code (usually 570 or 971) before the actual refund information appears. This can add 1-2 additional processing cycles beyond the standard timeframe. Also, pro tip: if you're checking obsessively like most of us do, try using the mobile IRS2Go app in addition to the website - sometimes one updates before the other due to different caching systems. I've seen my app show updates up to 4 hours before the desktop site reflected the same information. The key is patience after verification - it's almost always longer than the standard processing time, but the refund does eventually come through.

Just want to point out that the IRS is actually super backlogged right now. My friend had a similar excess contribution issue from 2022 and didn't get an IRS notice about additional penalties until January 2025 - almost 3 years later! So just because you haven't received a notice doesn't mean you're in the clear. The interest keeps accumulating the whole time, even if they're slow sending the notice. Better to be proactive like you're doing!

I went through something very similar last year and can offer some perspective on the timeline and what to expect. First, yes, you likely do owe additional penalties beyond the $390 excise tax. The failure-to-file penalty for Form 5329 is typically 5% of the unpaid tax per month (up to 25%), and failure-to-pay is 0.5% per month (up to 25%), plus interest compounding daily. For your situation, filing almost 2 years late, you're probably looking at the maximum penalties plus accumulated interest. In my case, a similar delay resulted in about $180 in additional penalties and interest on top of the base excise tax. Regarding the IRS notice - don't count on getting one anytime soon. The IRS is massively backlogged, and many people are waiting 2-3 years for notices on issues like this. The interest keeps accumulating whether they send you a notice or not. My recommendation: Call the IRS directly (or use a service to get through faster) to get the exact amount you owe. Once you have that number, pay it immediately to stop further interest accumulation. You can also explore the reasonable cause exception if this was truly an honest mistake - the IRS sometimes waives additional penalties for first-time errors when you demonstrate good faith efforts to correct the situation. The key is being proactive rather than waiting for them to contact you, which may never happen or could take years.

Has anyone actually calculated how much the student loan payment savings is compared to the tax hit? When my husband and I were in this situation, we found filing jointly saved us $3,200 in taxes, while filing separately only reduced student loan payments by about $1,800 annually. The math didn't work out for separate filing in our case.

Thanks everyone for the detailed responses! This is exactly the kind of insight I was hoping for. Based on what I'm reading, it sounds like I really need to run the numbers both ways before deciding. The student loan angle is particularly helpful since that wasn't something I had fully considered. A few follow-up questions: Since we bought our house in November, would the mortgage interest deduction be significant enough to tip the scales toward joint filing? We put down 10% so we're paying PMI too. Also, for my side gig income, I'm assuming I'd need to pay quarterly estimated taxes regardless of filing status - does that calculation change much between joint vs separate? I'm definitely going to try running both scenarios through tax software before making the final call. The state tax implications Nia mentioned are also something I need to research for Illinois specifically. Really appreciate everyone sharing their real experiences with this decision!