Have you considered having a tax professional review your return before submitting? For something that seems unusual to you, wouldn't it be worth the peace of mind to have someone verify everything is correct? Many military bases offer free tax preparation services through VITA programs. They could confirm if this refund amount is accurate for your specific situation and explain exactly which credits are generating this refund.

Your refund amount is definitely plausible! With 4 dependents and $27k income, you're hitting the sweet spot for both Child Tax Credit ($8,000 for 4 kids) and Earned Income Credit (potentially $6,000+ at your income level). These are refundable credits, meaning you get them even if you owe no tax. The fact that only $28 was withheld doesn't matter - these credits exist specifically to support working families like yours. Your brother-in-law's situation with 3 kids getting $6k actually supports this - one less child means $2k less in Child Tax Credit. The math checks out!

Thanks everyone for the advice! I decided to file an extension to be safe, but I also called the partnership using that phone service someone mentioned. They confirmed my K-3 will only have minimal information since my investment is small. They actually offered to send me a preliminary version of what my K-3 will look like when it's finalized!

That's great news! Getting a preliminary version of the K-3 is actually the best possible outcome - you'll have all the information you need to complete your return accurately without the stress of guessing or filing amendments later. For future reference, many partnerships will provide preliminary K-3 information if you ask directly, but most investors don't know this is an option. It sounds like you found a really practical solution that gives you the certainty you need while still meeting your filing obligations properly. Hope your final return goes smoothly when you get the official K-3!

Has anyone dealt with the health insurance reporting when separated? My husband had me on his policy for part of last year before removing me when we separated. I have no idea what to put on my tax forms since I don't have access to his 1095-B form.

I went through this exact situation two years ago during my separation. You absolutely do NOT need your spouse's W-2 information when filing Married Filing Separately - that's the whole point of MFS! You only report your own income, deductions, and withholdings. TurboTax might be confusing you because it's programmed to ask about spousal information for joint returns, but you can skip those sections entirely when filing separately. The only information you need from your spouse is their name and Social Security Number for the basic identification section of your return. A few important things to remember: 1) Make sure you select "Married Filing Separately" as your filing status, 2) Only enter YOUR W-2s, 1099s, and other income documents, 3) Your spouse will need to file their own separate return with their information, and 4) Be prepared that MFS typically results in higher taxes than filing jointly, but given your situation it's clearly the right choice. Don't stress about this - the IRS won't reject your return for not including your spouse's income when you're filing separately. That would defeat the entire purpose of having MFS as an option!

A $0 state refund is actually completely normal and happens more often than you'd think! It simply means your employer withheld the exact right amount of state taxes from your paychecks throughout the year - no more, no less. Here's what to check: Look at your completed state tax return and find two key numbers: your "total state tax liability" and your "total state tax withheld." If these numbers are the same (or very close), that explains why you got $0 back. You've already paid exactly what you owed through your paycheck deductions. The reason you got a small refund last year could be several things - maybe your employer withheld slightly more that year, or you qualified for a state tax credit that you don't qualify for this year, or there were small changes in your income or filing status. Don't worry - getting $0 back isn't a mistake! From a financial planning perspective, it's actually better than getting a large refund because it means you kept your money in your own account all year instead of giving the state an interest-free loan. You had access to that money to save, invest, or use as needed rather than waiting for the government to return it to you.

I see everyone explaining this really well already, but I wanted to add one more thing that helped me understand when I had the same confusion. Your $0 refund is actually a sign of good tax planning! Think of it this way - if you had gotten a $200 refund, that would mean you overpaid by $200 throughout the year. That's $200 you could have had in your savings account earning interest, or used to pay down debt, or invested. Instead, you gave the government a free loan for months. The fact that your withholding matched your actual tax liability so closely means your employer's payroll system did a great job calculating the right amount to take out of each paycheck. It's like hitting a bullseye in tax planning. If you want to double-check everything is correct, just compare your W-2 Box 17 (state income tax withheld) to the "total tax" line on your state return. If they're essentially equal, you've solved the mystery! Some people actually adjust their withholding specifically to try to get close to $0 refund each year.

I'm going through this exact same thing right now! My state refund showed "sent" on Tuesday and I've been anxiously waiting ever since. Reading everyone's experiences here is so helpful - sounds like that 1-3 business day window is pretty standard. I had no idea about the ACH processing batches and cutoff times that some of you mentioned. That explains why the timing can vary so much even when refunds get "sent" on the same day. I'm trying to be patient but when you're counting on that money for rent or other bills, every day feels like an eternity! At least now I know I'm not alone in the obsessive bank app checking 😅 Thanks for sharing your timelines everyone - gives me hope that mine should hit by tomorrow or Friday!

I've been in this exact situation so many times! The waiting is absolutely brutal when you're expecting that money. In my experience, once your state portal shows "sent," you're typically looking at 1-3 business days before it hits your account. The tricky part is that "sent" usually means they've initiated the ACH transfer, but it still has to go through all the banking processing steps. I've learned not to panic until it's been at least 5 business days, since that seems to be the outer limit for most states. Keep checking your account but try not to stress too much - the money is definitely on its way! 🤞