I just went through this exact scenario last month. Had all codes but 846, with a hold status for 6 weeks. Called the IRS, got through after multiple attempts, and found out it was stuck in education credit verification. Asked for a taxpayer advocate referral due to financial hardship (needed money for tuition). Got my 846 code 3 days later and refund the following week. Don't just wait - be proactive and specifically request hardship consideration if you need the funds urgently.

I'm in a very similar situation right now - filed February 12th with education credits and seeing the exact same pattern on my transcript. All the processing codes are there (150, 570, 971) but no 846, and it just updated to hold status yesterday. This is really concerning since I need my refund for spring semester expenses. Has anyone tried contacting their congressional representative's office for help? I've heard they can sometimes intervene with the IRS when there are processing delays. Also wondering if anyone knows whether the hold specifically relates to the education credit amount or if they're verifying the entire return. The uncertainty is really stressful when you're counting on that money for school costs.

Just want to say as someone who's been self-employed for years, taking the job while pregnant isn't a bad idea at all. The paperwork isn't that complex for small amounts and you can literally do it whenever you have time. The tax software questios are basically: did you make money from self employment? how much? did you have expenses? list them. That's it. And the money could be great for baby stuff! Take the job if you want it, the tax part is not a reason to turn it down.

Congratulations on the baby coming soon! I totally understand your hesitation about complicating taxes during such a busy time, but honestly, for $3,300 in freelance income, it's really not as overwhelming as it seems. The self-employment tax will be around $465 (15.3% on about 92% of your earnings), but you can deduct legitimate business expenses to lower that. Things like a portion of your internet bill, any software or supplies you bought for the work, even part of your phone bill if you use it for business calls. With married filing jointly (definitely stick with that), you'll just add a Schedule C to your regular tax return. Most tax prep software walks you through it step by step with simple questions. The whole process might add 30-45 minutes to your normal tax filing. That extra income could really help with baby expenses, and since you're due in 6 weeks, you could potentially finish the project before the baby arrives or work on it flexibly afterward. Don't let tax concerns stop you from taking an opportunity that could benefit your growing family!

PATH act got me in a chokehold fr fr 😤 February 17th cant come soon enough

Just wanted to share my experience with cycle 05 - filed on 1/20 and got the same code. Been refreshing WMR obsessively until I found this thread! Thanks for the heads up about waiting until tomorrow morning, gonna save my sanity tonight 😅 Also curious about that taxr.ai tool everyone's mentioning - might give it a shot since I'm tired of trying to decode my transcript myself

Just a heads up - if you received a check over $600, the settlement administrator will likely send you a 1099-MISC form reporting the payment to the IRS. So even if you're unsure about taxability, the IRS will know about the money. If you disagree with how it's reported on the 1099, you'll need documentation to support your position that some/all is non-taxable. I learned this the hard way with another settlement!

I went through something similar with a different class action settlement last year. The key thing that helped me was calling the settlement administrator directly - they were actually really helpful in explaining exactly what each portion of the payment was for. In my case, they broke it down like this: part was reimbursement for the cost difference between the defective airbag and a proper replacement (not taxable), and part was compensation for the inconvenience and potential safety risk (taxable). The administrator also told me that if the settlement was over $600, they'd automatically send me a 1099 form, but they said I could still exclude the non-taxable portions when filing my return as long as I had proper documentation. I'd definitely recommend getting that breakdown in writing from them before tax season hits. It made my filing so much cleaner and I felt confident I was handling it correctly.

I've been lurking in this community for a while and this discussion really resonates with me. I'm currently a mid-level manager at a tech company but have been building a side consulting practice and looking at real estate investments. The tax complexity is overwhelming and I find myself in that same cycle of not knowing what questions to ask my CPA. What strikes me about this thread is how many people are in similar situations - we're all knowledge-seeking business owners who want to optimize our taxes but don't necessarily need to become practitioners. The EA path seems like overkill for our goals, especially when you consider the ongoing CPE requirements just to maintain a credential we won't use professionally. The hybrid approach discussion here has been eye-opening. I hadn't considered AI tools for tax strategy, but given how sophisticated these systems have become in other domains, it makes sense they'd be valuable for tax analysis too. The ability to upload your actual documents and get specific advice rather than generic information seems like a game-changer. I'm particularly interested in the LLC to S-corp analysis capabilities mentioned. I've been putting off that decision because getting clear guidance on the break-even point for my specific income situation has been difficult. Having a tool that could model different scenarios based on my actual financials would be incredibly valuable. Think I'll give taxr.ai a try before committing to the EA certification path. Thanks for sharing all these perspectives!

This is such a thoughtful discussion! I'm in a similar situation - self-employed with growing business complexity and constantly hitting those knowledge walls you mentioned. What's really resonating with me is the distinction everyone's making between needing the EA *credential* versus needing EA-level *knowledge*. Since you're not planning to practice, the hundreds of hours spent on client representation procedures seems like a poor use of your time when you could get the strategic knowledge you need more efficiently. The timing factor is crucial too - with your LLC to S-corp conversion timeline and multiple business launches, you need actionable insights now, not after months of certification study. The AI tools and targeted education approach seems much more aligned with your actual goals. I'm curious about one thing though - have you considered what happens if your business ventures grow to the point where you do want to offer tax services? Would starting with the hybrid approach now preclude pursuing EA certification later if circumstances change? From what I can tell, the knowledge you'd gain from targeted study would actually make the EA process easier if you decided to pursue it down the road.