5 In my experience, calling before the 21-day mark is pretty useless. They'll just tell you it's still within the normal processing time. I'd wait until at least 21 days have passed before trying to contact them - then at least they might give you more specific info about any delays.

9 Thanks for the advice. You're right - I should probably wait until the 21-day mark passes. My return is pretty straightforward so hopefully it won't take much longer than that. Just the waiting and uncertainty that drives me crazy!

1 That's good to know! So even though I'm still waiting for that verification letter, my refund is still being processed behind the scenes? I was worried the whole process was on hold until I got that official verification.

Thanks for mentioning this! Do you know if the contribution limits are going up for 2025? I like to max out my HSA each year since it's basically the best tax advantage account out there - triple tax advantaged!

Yes, the HSA contribution limits are increasing for 2025. They'll be $4,150 for individual coverage and $8,300 for family coverage. The catch-up contribution for those 55 and older remains $1,000. You're absolutely right about HSAs being triple tax-advantaged - tax-deductible contributions, tax-free growth, and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses. It's one of the best tax shelters available if you can afford to max it out and ideally pay medical expenses out of pocket while letting the HSA investments grow.

I second this! TurboTax has gotten so bloated and complicated. I switched to FreeTaxUSA too and it's much more straightforward for HSA stuff. Plus it's like $100 cheaper for essentially the same result.

I double-checked all my statements. The money was received, processed, and invested on 4/1/24, well before the deadline. I specifically told the advisor (in writing, thankfully) that this was for tax year 2023. The coding as 2024 was definitely their error.

Yes, they absolutely do cross-reference these! The financial institution files Form 5498 reporting your IRA contributions and which tax year they're for. The IRS's computer system automatically matches these against your tax return. If the years don't match, it can trigger an automated notice or audit. You might not have been caught yet, but I wouldn't count on that continuing. The IRS has up to 3 years to audit a return (longer in some cases). I'd recommend getting it fixed rather than waiting for a notice, which will include penalties and interest if they determine you took a deduction you weren't entitled to.

I tried using the free fillable forms for my back taxes from 2020 and it was a nightmare. They don't provide any guidance, and I kept getting errors when I tried to submit because I missed some obscure form. Ended up paying for basic TurboTax anyway because I got so frustrated. If you only have W-2 income it might be doable, but with any complexity, I wouldn't recommend it.

Thanks for sharing your experience. That's exactly what I was worried about. I do have some investment income and a small side business, so it sounds like the free forms would be more trouble than they're worth. I'll probably just bite the bullet and pay for some basic tax software to make sure everything gets filed correctly.

Do you know if the Fresh Start program works for someone who hasn't filed in 5 years? I'm scared to even contact the IRS at this point.

This is really helpful perspective. What about bank statements? Should I be providing my entire bank statements from the year or just the transactions they're asking about? I'm worried about them seeing other stuff that might trigger more questions.

That's really good advice about the cover sheets - I wouldn't have thought of that. Did you end up owing additional tax after your audit was completed? I'm worried they're going to disallow all my legitimate business expenses.

I did end up owing a little more, but nowhere near what I feared. They disallowed about $2,100 of my $19,500 in business deductions because I couldn't find adequate documentation for some meals and entertainment expenses. My well-documented home office and equipment deductions were accepted without issue. The cover sheets definitely helped - the auditor actually commented on how easy I made their job. Each sheet listed the category (like "Home Office"), total amount claimed, how I calculated it, and an itemized list with all supporting documents attached. I even included IRS publication references showing why each deduction qualified. It turned what could have been multiple sessions into just one 2-hour meeting.