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Using Claimyr will:
- Connect you to a human agent at the IRS
- Skip the long phone menu
- Call the correct department
- Redial until on hold
- Forward a call to your phone with reduced hold time
- Give you free callbacks if the IRS drops your call
If I could give 10 stars I would
If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
Really made a difference
Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
Worth not wasting your time calling for hours.
Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
An incredibly helpful service
An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls ā which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
Consistent,frustration free, quality Service.
Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
IT WORKS!! Not a scam!
I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
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I've been waiting 8 weeks now and finally got my refund yesterday! To answer your question, first purchase was paying off my credit card balance. Boring I know, but that interest was killing me. Now I can actually breathe again financially. Pro tip: the IRS2Go app sometimes updates faster than the website. Mine showed "sent" on the app about 12 hours before the website updated.
Kai Santiago
ā¢That's actually really smart paying off the CC first. I should probably do the same but I've been eyeing a new gaming laptop for months lol. Thanks for the tip about the app - just downloaded it! Any idea how long it usually takes between "sent" status and the money actually showing up in your account?
For direct deposit, it's usually super quick after it shows "sent" - I got mine the very next day. Some banks might take 1-2 business days depending on how they process incoming transfers. If you got a paper check, it'll take about a week after the "sent" status appears before it arrives in your mailbox. And seriously, pay off that credit card first! The interest you save will help you buy an even better gaming laptop in a few months.
Thais Soares
Anyone else notice the "Where's My Refund" tool is basically useless? It's been showing "still processing" for 7 weeks, then suddenly yesterday it jumped to "refund sent" with no in-between status. So irritating not knowing what's happening for almost 2 months!
Nalani Liu
ā¢Same experience here! I think they're just understaffed and the tracking system doesn't get updated in real-time. Mine was "processing" forever and then suddenly I just got the deposit with no warning. First purchase: new tires for my car that I've been putting off for way too long!
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Ezra Beard
Something nobody's mentioned yet - if your brother had any self-employment income (like mowing lawns, babysitting, etc.) in addition to his W-2 job, the filing requirements are different. Self-employment income over $400 requires filing regardless of age or total income. Also, for future reference, your brother should check box "Exempt" on his W-4 if he expects to have no tax liability for the year. This is probably why no federal taxes were withheld - either he or his employer already did this.
Tate Jensen
ā¢That's a good point! He only has the restaurant job, no side gigs. But I'm not sure about the W-4 thing - I don't think he knew to check any specific box when he filled out his paperwork. Is that something the employer might have done automatically because of his age?
Ezra Beard
ā¢Employers shouldn't automatically mark anyone as exempt based on age alone. When your brother filled out his W-4, he would have had to specifically claim exemption from withholding by writing "Exempt" in the appropriate space. It's possible he did this without understanding it, or maybe the employer made an assumption based on his age and income level (which they shouldn't do). For his new W-4 this year, if he expects to earn more than the standard deduction ($12,950), he should definitely not claim exempt status, as he'll likely owe taxes.
One benefit of filing that no one mentioned - it starts the statute of limitations clock with the IRS. Without filing, the IRS theoretically has forever to come after you if they think you should have filed. I learned this the hard way when my son didn't file for his first job and got a notice 3 years later. It was a headache to resolve even though he didn't actually owe anything.
Is that really true? I thought if you don't owe any taxes, there's no penalty for not filing when you're under the threshold. Why would the IRS come after someone for not filing when they weren't required to?
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Ella Cofer
I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the past three years and it's been great. Federal filing is free and state is only $15. No hidden fees that I've encountered. I was paying $230 at a tax chain before this and getting the exact same refund. For a simple tax situation like yours, there's absolutely no reason to pay someone $1350. The software asks all the same questions a preparer would. Just be careful and double-check your info before submitting!
Kevin Bell
ā¢Do they offer any support if you get confused during the process? I'm not super tax-savvy and that's why I've always used a preparer.
Ella Cofer
ā¢They do offer customer support through email for free, and if you upgrade to their deluxe version (which is still only about $7), you get access to live chat support. Honestly though, their interface is really straightforward and they explain things in simple terms throughout the process. Their help sections are actually really good at explaining tax concepts in plain English, much clearer than what I got from my previous tax preparer who just rushed through everything. And even with the deluxe upgrade for priority support, you're still paying less than $25 total, which is a fraction of what you'd pay a professional.
Just be careful with the "free" options advertised by TurboTax and H&R Block. They lure you in with "free" then halfway through tell you that you need to upgrade to a paid version because you have dependents or some other common situation. Happened to me last year and I ended up paying $120 when I expected it to be free!
Yep, this happened to me too. Started with "free" TurboTax, ended up paying $175 after state filing and all their add-ons. Still better than the $350 I was paying before, but definitely not the "free" they advertised.
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Sunny Wang
Something nobody mentioned yet - if you're living abroad, make sure you're aware of FBAR requirements (Foreign Bank Account Reporting) if you have foreign financial accounts totaling over $10,000 at any point during the calendar year. These are separate from tax returns and have their own penalties for non-filing. Also look into the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (Form 2555) which might let you exclude up to ~$120,000 of foreign earnings from US taxation if you meet either the bona fide residence test or the physical presence test.
Vince Eh
ā¢Oh crap I didn't even think about FBAR stuff. I do have a local bank account here but it's never had more than like $5k in it so maybe I'm ok? What happens if you miss filing those in previous years?
Sunny Wang
ā¢If your foreign accounts never exceeded $10,000 total (combined value of all foreign accounts) at any point during the year, you're not required to file the FBAR for that year. So based on what you've said, you should be fine on that front. If someone does need to file back FBARs, there's a streamlined filing procedure for people who weren't aware of the requirement. The IRS recognizes that many Americans abroad simply don't know about this obligation. The penalties for non-willful violations are much less severe than if they think you were deliberately hiding assets.
Whatever you do DON'T just keep ignoring it. My cousin didn't file for like 5 years and ended up owing over $15k with all the penalties and interest. And thats even though he woulda only owed like $4k if he'd just filed on time! The penalties are no joke.
This happened to my brother too. The penalties literally doubled what he owed. He had to set up a payment plan for 3 years to clear it all.
Josef Tearle
One thing to consider with your cover letter - include specific details about the timeframes your child was with you. For example "Child resided with me continuously from January 1-March 15, April 10-June 8..." etc. I went through this with my ex who traveled constantly for work but still tried to claim our kids. The more specific your documentation, the easier it is for the IRS to verify. Also consider including statements from school officials, daycare providers, or doctors confirming your child's residence with you.
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Hailey O'Leary
ā¢Thanks for the specific advice. Do you think having a notarized statement from my parents (who live with us and helped care for my daughter while spouse was traveling) would be helpful to include with the cover letter?
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Josef Tearle
ā¢Yes, a notarized statement from your parents would be very helpful since they're third-party witnesses to your child's living situation. The IRS values documentation from people other than the parents involved in the dispute. Having your parents include specific dates they helped care for your daughter while living in your home would add credibility to your claim. Just make sure they're precise about timeframes and their statement aligns with your overall documentation. This kind of supporting evidence can really strengthen your case with the IRS.
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Shelby Bauman
Don't forget to include Form 8379 (Injured Spouse Allocation) with your paper return! This protects your portion of any refund if your STBX has any outstanding debts the IRS might try to collect. During my divorce last year, I neglected to file this and lost half my refund to my ex's student loan debt.
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Quinn Herbert
ā¢That's not what Form 8379 is for though? Injured Spouse is when you file jointly and want to protect your refund from your spouse's debts. OP is filing separately, so this wouldn't apply. I think you're thinking of something else.
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