Whatever you do, DON'T ignore the CP2000! I made that mistake thinking it would go away and ended up with wage garnishment! Respond within the deadline even if you're still gathering some documents - you can always send additional info later.

I went through almost the exact same situation last year with a CP2000 notice! The key thing that saved me was keeping meticulous records of WHEN payments were actually received vs when they were reported by clients. Here's what worked for me: I created a simple spreadsheet showing the client name, amount, date payment was actually received (per my bank statements), and which tax year I correctly reported it in. Then I included copies of the relevant pages from both my 2023 AND 2024 tax returns to show the IRS exactly where that income appeared. The IRS had the same issue - a client reported paying me in December 2023 when I actually received it in January 2024. My response letter was very straightforward: "The payment from [Client Name] for $X was received on [Date] as shown in the attached bank statement. This income was correctly reported on my 2024 tax return, not 2023, as it was received in 2024." Don't stress too much - when you have clear documentation like bank statements showing the actual deposit date, the IRS will correct their error. Just make sure to respond before that 3-week deadline! The whole process took about 6-8 weeks for me and they completely removed the assessment.

Might be worth asking your client to contact the IRS on their end to confirm the 1099-NEC was submitted correctly. Sometimes businesses think they've completed the process but actually missed a step. Had this happen with a small business client of mine last year - they thought they'd filed everything but it turned out their tax software had saved the forms as "pending" instead of actually submitting them. Caused a huge headache for their contractors.

Just went through this exact scenario two months ago! The key thing to remember is that your filing is correct - you reported the income you received, which is what matters. The IRS verification letter is just their way of reconciling their records when there's a timing mismatch. A few practical tips from my experience: 1) Respond to the letter within the timeframe they specify (usually 30 days), 2) Include a copy of the 1099-NEC you received along with a brief explanation that your client filed late, and 3) Keep copies of all your correspondence. The refund delay is frustrating but typically resolves within 6-8 weeks once they receive your response. I actually called the IRS after responding and they confirmed my documentation was sufficient - they just needed to match it against what they eventually received from my client. Don't stress too much about it, this is more common than you'd think with small businesses and independent contractors.

My accountant said sometimes those numbers can be the software batch number from whatever tax software the company uses to generate 1099s. QuickBooks and other programs will automatically assign batch numbers to groups of forms printed at the same time. So 9595 might just be saying "these forms were all part of print batch #9595" or something similar.

This thread has been really helpful! I was panicking about the same 9595 code on my 1099-MISC forms and thought I might need to report it somewhere special on my tax return. Reading through everyone's explanations, it's clear this is just internal company tracking that doesn't affect our tax filings at all. I love the restaurant order number analogy - that really puts it in perspective. For anyone else stumbling across this thread with the same concern: focus on the actual income amounts and your personal info being correct. Ignore those random tracking codes completely when preparing your taxes. Thanks everyone for sharing your knowledge and experiences!

Has anyone seen a code Y that DOES have a value next to it? Just curious what that would represent if it happened...

I work in tax preparation and see this all the time! Code Y without a value in Box 14 is completely normal and nothing to worry about. As others mentioned, Box 14 codes aren't standardized by the IRS, so employers use whatever letters make sense for their payroll systems. The key thing to remember is that Box 14 is only reportable on your tax return if there's an actual dollar amount that needs to be included somewhere (like state taxes, union dues, or certain benefits). A letter code by itself with no value is purely informational and won't affect your tax filing at all. You can safely proceed with filing your taxes - just ignore that lone "Y" in Box 14. If you're using tax software, it might ask about Box 14 entries, but you can simply skip it or enter "Code Y - no value" if the software requires something.

There's a specific pattern with the February 25th direct deposit date this year. I've tracked this on several tax forums, and most people are seeing deposits hit on February 26th (today) rather than the 25th. As of February 26th at 10:30am, about 65% of Chime users with 2/25 DDDs have reported receiving their funds. The remaining should come through by end of day according to previous patterns from January refunds.

SUCCESS UPDATE: Mine just hit my Chime account! DDD was 2/25, deposit came through 2/26 at 1:42pm. According to IRS Publication 2043 (IRS Refund Information Guidelines for the Tax Preparation Community), the IRS issues refunds daily to authorized financial institutions. They're legally required to make deposits available by the next business day after receiving funds, but online banks like Chime typically process same-day when received.