The IRS phone system is a nightmare this time of year. After wasting 4 hours on hold last week, I used Claimyr.com to get through (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c). They connected me to an agent in about 15 minutes. Found out my return was flagged for income verification but the letter hadn't been sent yet. At least I know what's happening now instead of checking WMR obsessively every day.

Processing doesn't necessarily mean anything's wrong. The IRS is just overwhelmed and understaffed. I filed February 5th and just got my DDD yesterday. Hang in there - it'll come eventually.

Back in 2022, I had this exact same situation. Filed in January, transcript showed N/A for weeks. Everything was perfectly fine. The IRS processing centers get overwhelmed at the beginning of tax season. Your return is probably sitting in a digital queue waiting to be processed. As long as you received an acceptance confirmation, you're in their system.

I always prepare for this waiting game every year! Last year I filed on January 21st and didn't see transcript updates until February 18th. Then suddenly everything updated at once! My sister-in-law filed on February 3rd and got her refund before me. The IRS works in mysterious ways. Just make sure you have all your documentation organized in case they request anything.

Filed Feb 19th and nothing yet. Called the IRS yesterday after using Claimyr.com to get through (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) - saved me hours of redial hell. The agent told me my return is still in normal processing and there are no flags or issues. She said they're just backed up and to keep waiting. At least now I know nothing's wrong!

Tax pro here. This tax season has been particularly slow for processing. If you filed electronically on 2/17, you're just now hitting the 5-week mark which is still within normal processing time for 2024, especially if you claimed any refundable credits. Unless you get a specific notice from the IRS, I wouldn't worry yet.

I'm an Enrolled Agent and I've seen this exact scenario play out with multiple clients this tax season. The Form 8812 (Additional Child Tax Credit) reconciliation process is creating a bottleneck in IRS processing centers. When the Automated Underreporter (AUR) system flags a discrepancy between claimed CTC amounts and the advance payment database, it routes the return to Error Resolution System (ERS) for manual review. One client had a $1,800 advance payment but claimed the full $2,000, resulting in a TC 570 hold followed by TC 971 notice generation and ultimately a TC 290 adjustment reducing the refund by exactly $1,800.

There's an important deadline to be aware of here. According to Internal Revenue Manual 21.5.6, the IRS must issue refunds within 45 days of the filing deadline (May 15, 2024) or they must pay interest on your refund amount. So even if your return is stuck in the error department for Child Tax Credit corrections, they have a regulatory incentive to process it by June 29, 2024. If you filed before the deadline and don't receive your refund by then, you'll automatically be paid interest (currently at 7% annual rate) for each additional day they hold your money.

I've seen this scenario play out many times, and it's not always as simple as "just wait longer." Last year, my brother had a similar timeline to yours, and it turned out there was a name mismatch between his tax return and Social Security records that he never would have known about if he hadn't called. By the time he resolved it, he'd waited three months compared to what could have been three weeks. Not saying that's your situation, but sometimes these delays indicate an issue that needs addressing rather than just more patience.

According to Internal Revenue Manual 21.4.1, the standard processing time for electronic returns is 21 days, but IRC Section 6402(a) allows for additional review periods when necessary to verify return accuracy. Based on the current processing data from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), approximately 15% of returns filed in late January are experiencing extended processing times due to heightened fraud detection measures implemented this tax season. This is actually a protective measure, not an indication of problems with your specific return.