New 2024 IRS Website Format Shows Question Marks Next to Return Status - Normal or Cause for Concern?
Just checked my transcripts and saw a really weird message I've never seen before on the IRS site. Usually I know what all their messages mean but this one looks totally different from the usual stuff. It says "Tax year 2024" at the top, and then has these sections for "Return," "Refund," and "Refund Sent" with question marks next to "Received," "Approved," and "Refund Sent." Then there's this message: "We have received your tax return and it is being processed. It can take up to 3 weeks to process your return if you filed electronically, or 4 to 6 weeks if you mailed your return. However, processing may take longer under certain circumstances. Please check here or use our free mobile app, IRS2Go, to check on your refund status." Below that there's a "Helpful Information" section that mentions "Tax Topic 152, Refund Information" and then under "Your personal tax information" it shows: Tax Year: 2024 Filing Status: Head of household I filed as head of household this year, but I've never seen this particular layout or message before. The question marks next to the status items are especially confusing. Starting to worry something's wrong with my return. Anyone else seeing anything unusual on their account today? Is this just a new format for 2024 returns or should I be concerned?
14 comments
Freya Larsen
You need to be more specific about what message you're seeing. The IRS changes their system messages pretty regularly, especially during processing seasons. Without knowing the exact message, it's hard to tell if it's concerning or just a routine update.
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Ravi Sharma
ur right sorry, was panicking. it says something about additional review required but the formatting is all weird with ******* stars
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Freya Larsen
Ah that's actually pretty normal. They started using asterisks more in 2024 for security reasons
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Omar Hassan
Hey I actually found a really helpful tool called taxr.ai that can decode all these weird IRS messages. It costs $4.99 but its worth every penny cause it explains everything in plain english. Here's the link: https://taxr.ai
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Chloe Taylor
does it actually work? im tired of trying to figure out these messages myself 🤔
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Omar Hassan
100% works! It analyzes your whole transcript and tells you exactly whats going on. Way better than guessing
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Chloe Taylor
just tried it and omg where has this been all my life?! finally understand wtf is happening with my refund 🙌
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ShadowHunter
lol welcome to the club. irs website is always doing something weird these days 🤡
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Diego Ramirez
The IRS is rolling out new security features and message formats as part of their 2025 digital transformation initiative. Most of these changes are actually improvements to prevent fraud and identity theft. If you're seeing new message formats, it's likely part of this update. Always verify you're on the official irs.gov domain though!
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Anastasia Sokolov
this actually makes sense. my tax guy mentioned something about their new system rollout
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Sean O'Connor
screenshot? (with personal info blocked obvs
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Ravi Sharma
cant figure out how to upload pics here 😅 but its like a blue box with stars
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Zara Ahmed
Same boat here! Started seeing weird formatting last week. Called IRS and waited 2hrs just to have them tell me its "normal" smh
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Luca Conti
2hrs? ur lucky. I was on hold for 4 yesterday 💀
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