I've been tracking refund timing for the past three tax seasons, and I'm definitely seeing faster processing this year. Last year my refund took 24 days with similar credits claimed. The year before that was during COVID backlog and took 47 days. This year? Just 11 days from acceptance to deposit. The IRS seems to have finally caught up on their backlog and improved their systems.

I filed on March 15, 2024, and got my refund on March 26, 2024 - just 11 days later! Also have 2 kids and claimed CTC. I was shocked because last year it took until May 12th to get my refund after filing in February. The IRS must have really streamlined their processes this year. I'm actually impressed for once!

Have you considered using the free fillable forms directly from the IRS? It's like doing your taxes on paper but electronically. If you're comfortable with the tax forms and calculations, this is completely free regardless of income or tax situation. It's not as user-friendly as TurboTax or H&R Block - more like filling out Excel spreadsheets than being guided through questions - but if you know what you're doing with taxes, it works just like filing paper forms but without the stamp.

Has anyone tried the IRS's Free File Fillable Forms? I was skeptical at first since I have 1099 income from three different clients, but it worked perfectly for me. You do need to know which forms to fill out (Schedule C, SE, etc.), but if you're comfortable with basic tax concepts, it's completely free no matter your income level. I've used it for the past three tax seasons without issues?

I filed on February 13th, 2024 and was in the same situation until March 30th. What worked for me was requesting a Tax Return Transcript instead of an Account Transcript. For some reason, my Return Transcript showed up first, even though everyone says it should be the opposite. Also, check your transcript between 3-6am on Wednesdays and Thursdays - that's when the IRS system typically updates according to the cycle codes. I noticed my transcript finally appeared at 4:27am on a Thursday morning after showing N/A for weeks. If you're desperate and need your refund for bills, you might consider applying for the Taxpayer Advocate Service. They can help if you're facing financial hardship due to refund delays.

I was in this exact situation last year. Filed February 12th, 2023 and had absolutely nothing on my transcript until March 28th. I remember checking obsessively every day and driving myself crazy. What I learned from that experience: IRS processing doesn't follow any logical pattern we can discern. Some people who filed after me got their refunds weeks earlier. This year I filed February 15th, 2024, and had the same empty transcript situation until yesterday. Suddenly everything updated at once, and my direct deposit is scheduled for April 17th. No explanation for the delay, no issues with my return. My advice based on two years of this: the system works eventually, just not on any timeline that makes sense to us mere mortals.

I'm feeling your frustration! I had the EXACT same issue last year with Credit Karma and a TurboTax advance. After four days of nothing showing up, I was so worried! I finally used Claimyr (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) to get through to an actual IRS agent instead of waiting on hold for hours. I was literally in tears when they told me my refund had been sent but was held by the bank for processing because of the advance. The agent was able to confirm everything was fine and gave me the exact timeline. Such a relief!

Isn't it interesting how the tax refund system works differently for different people? I've noticed that when you get an advance, the final refund process follows a different path. Have you considered that your refund might be processed differently because of the advance? In my experience, the advance creates an extra verification step that can add 1-3 days to the process, but rarely causes actual problems. It's just a matter of patience at this point.

Have you checked your actual tax transcript, not just the code? Sometimes the transcript contains information that WMR doesn't show. Is it possible you're looking at an account transcript instead of a return transcript? What if you tried using a tool like https://taxr.ai to analyze your transcript? It can often identify patterns that indicate whether you need to verify or if it's just a standard processing delay. I've found transcript analysis to be much more reliable than the WMR tool, especially during peak filing season when the system gets overwhelmed with generic messages.

According to the IRS website, if you need to verify your identity, you'll receive Letter 5071C, 5747C, or 5447C. If you haven't received any of these letters, the WMR message might be generic. I had this happen last year - WMR said verification needed but no letter came. After waiting three weeks, my refund was suddenly approved without me doing anything. The system is overloaded right now and showing lots of standard messages that don't actually apply. Just keep checking your mail and transcript daily.