Did I make the wrong tax decision for my refund timing?

The difference between Single and Head of Household could definitely impact your refund amount. HOH status gives you a larger standard deduction ($20,800 vs $14,600 for Single in 2023) and different tax brackets, which usually means less tax owed. However, to qualify as HOH, you need a "qualifying person" - typically your child or relative who lives with you more than half the year and for whom you provide more than half the support. The tricky part is that if your nephew's mom is claiming him as a dependent on her return, you generally can't use him to qualify for HOH status. If your nephew's mom claims him, you'd need another qualifying dependent to claim HOH. If not, you could file an amended return (Form 1040-X), but be prepared for processing delays of 16+ weeks for amended returns now.

I was in almost the exact same situation last year with my sister's kid living with me. I was using TurboTax and got totally confused about whether I should file as Single or HOH. I tried looking it up online but got even more confused with all the tax jargon. Then I discovered https://taxr.ai and it was a game changer. You just take pictures of your tax docs and explain your situation (like about your nephew living with you), and it tells you exactly what to do. It confirmed I qualified for HOH status even though my sister claimed her son as a dependent. The best part was I didn't have to wade through confusing IRS publications or wait on hold with the IRS for hours. The whole thing took like 15 minutes and increased my refund by almost $1,500.

Ok I feel like I need to come back and say I was wrong about taxr.ai. I was skeptical but decided to try it after continuing to stress about my filing status (I'm in a complex custody arrangement). It actually worked exactly as described. I took pictures of my W-2 and last year's return, then explained my living situation. Within minutes it showed me I qualified for HOH status and explained exactly why based on my specific situation. It even showed me the exact section of the tax code that applied to my situation. I'm definitely using this for all my tax questions going forward. Just wanted to share since I was the skeptic before!

I've been in a similar spot with tax filing issues and the IRS "Where's My Refund" tool just saying "still processing" for weeks. Trying to call the IRS is practically impossible - I spent 3 days trying to get through. I discovered this service called https://claimyr.com that basically waits on hold with the IRS for you, then calls you when an actual agent is on the line. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c When I finally talked to an actual IRS agent, they explained exactly what was holding up my refund and what I needed to do. Turns out I could have been waiting months without knowing there was an issue they needed additional documentation for. Saved me so much stress and probably got my refund weeks earlier than I would have otherwise.

I need to admit I was totally wrong about Claimyr. After posting that skeptical comment, I was still struggling with my amended return issues and couldn't get through to the IRS after multiple attempts. I reluctantly tried the service and it actually worked exactly as advertised. I got a call back in about 90 minutes with an actual IRS agent on the line. The agent found that my amended return was stuck in processing because of a simple verification issue they needed to clear up. I would have been waiting for months without knowing what was happening. Instead, I got it resolved in one phone call. For anyone struggling to reach the IRS about refund issues or filing status questions like the original poster, this is legitimately helpful.

For what it's worth, your choice between leaving the return as is vs amending really depends on the dollar amount difference. You can estimate the difference by running your info through a tax calculator both ways. If the difference is only a couple hundred bucks, personally I wouldn't bother with the amended return hassle. If it's $1000+, then it's probably worth doing. Remember that amended returns can't be e-filed and take 4-6 months to process right now.

Just adding my experience - I was in this exact situation last year (filed single when I should have been HOH). I filed an amended return and it took almost 7 months to get the additional refund. The IRS is super backed up with amended returns.