Thank you so much for this suggestion! I didn't know the SSA would have that information. Do they show the tax withholding amounts too or just the total income? And how quickly does that information get updated?

The SSA only shows your total earnings, not the withholding amounts. So it will help confirm your income, but you'll still need to estimate your federal and state tax withholding from the pay stubs you have. It typically gets updated a few months after the end of each quarter, so there might be some lag. But it's a good way to verify your total earnings when you don't have complete records. Even partial confirmation is better than nothing when you're filing a substitute W-2 form.

This is definitely an option, but there can be a significant delay. W-2s aren't required to be filed with the IRS until January 31st, and then it takes time for them to be processed and appear in your transcript. If the company closed and never filed them at all (which sounds possible in OP's case), they won't show up at all.

Thanks for the suggestion! I tried contacting their customer service through the chat function but waited 45 mins with no response. I ended up calling their number and it went to voicemail saying they're experiencing "higher than normal call volume" 🙄 I'm going to try again tomorrow morning when maybe they're less busy. I just don't want to start all over with another site since I've already entered everything. It's so frustrating when they advertise free filing but then try to charge you at the last minute!

That's so frustrating! Try early morning like 8-9am Eastern time when they first open. That's when I've had the best luck getting through. Also, take screenshots of any "free filing" promotions they advertised to you, so you can reference them. One other thing - sometimes if you just leave your cart sitting there incomplete for a day or two, they'll email you a discount code to entice you to complete your filing. Might be worth trying if nothing else works!

I used it this year and it was pretty straightforward! But it only works if you have a simple return. If you have any investments, self-employment income, or need to itemize deductions, you can't use it. Also, it's still limited to certain states though they expanded the program this year.

Thanks for the info! I'll look into whether my state is included. My taxes are pretty simple - just a W-2 and student loan interest, so maybe I'll qualify. Anything to avoid these surprise fees from the commercial sites!

Did you contact TurboTax customer support about it? I wonder if they even know their system is doing this to people and causing anxiety.

I did try reaching out to their customer service about it. Got a generic response saying "refund status is provided by the IRS and we recommend checking the IRS website for the most accurate information." Pretty much confirmed they know their tracker has issues but don't really do anything to fix it or warn users. The representative didn't seem surprised at all when I mentioned the status randomly changing, so I'm guessing they get these complaints all the time during tax season.

Does this happen with other tax prep services too or just TurboTax? I've been using H&R Block and wondering if I should expect the same issues.

Do you happen to know where in the tax forms you claim the treaty benefits? I've been looking through the 1040 instructions and I'm totally lost.

You'll need to attach Form 8833 (Treaty-Based Return Position Disclosure) to your tax return if you're claiming treaty benefits. On the form, you'll need to cite the specific treaty article that applies to your situation. For retirement accounts specifically, you'll report the income normally on your return, but then identify the applicable treaty article that modifies how it's taxed. The exact location depends on what type of retirement account it was - for example, 401(k) distributions typically go on line 5 of Form 1040, but you'd need to include Form 8833 explaining why the treaty reduces your tax liability.

From what I understand, the 10% early withdrawal penalty is part of US domestic tax law and applies to US residents/citizens. If you're being treated as a nonresident (getting 1042-S), you're generally subject to flat withholding under Chapter 3 rules, not the additional penalty. But don't take my word for it - check with a tax pro.

Thanks for the insight! I did some more research and it looks like you're right - as a nonresident, I'm generally subject to the flat 30% withholding (or lower treaty rate) but not the additional 10% early withdrawal penalty. This is a huge relief since that would have been another $5,400 on my distribution.

This is so helpful! Quick question - what if the pay schedules are different? I teach at one college that pays monthly and another that pays biweekly in the same system. Does that mess up the withholding calculations?

Different pay schedules shouldn't mess up your annual withholding in the end, but it can cause some variation in how much is taken from each paycheck. The withholding system is designed to estimate your annual tax based on the frequency of your pay periods. When you have different schedules, each payroll system is making its own calculation based on that specific payment. The good news is that it all reconciles at the end of the year on your W2. If you want your withholding to be more consistent, you can use the "extra withholding" line on your W4 to specify an additional amount to withhold from one of your paychecks to make up any difference.

Yes, you absolutely should be checking the multiple employers box! Since you're getting two separate W2s from different university systems, those are definitely separate employers with different EINs (Employer Identification Numbers).