Filed my tax return today - federal was accepted immediately but state is still "Processing" - normal?

This is completely normal. The federal return (IRS) and state returns are processed by entirely separate systems. The IRS e-file acceptance is just confirming they received your return and it passed initial validation checks - not that your return is fully processed or approved.State tax agencies typically take longer to send acceptance confirmations. Illinois Department of Revenue can take 24-72 hours to acknowledge receipt, and that's before they begin actual processing. For processing and issuing your refund, Illinois is currently estimating 4-6 weeks for electronic returns (longer for paper returns).If your return still shows "Processing" after 3-4 days, you might want to check the Illinois Department of Revenue website to verify they received it. But at just 48 hours, this is within normal timeframes.

This is completely normal. The federal return (IRS) and state returns are processed by entirely separate systems. The IRS e-file acceptance is just confirming they received your return and it passed initial validation checks - not that your return is fully processed or approved. State tax agencies typically take longer to send acceptance confirmations. Illinois Department of Revenue can take 24-72 hours to acknowledge receipt, and that's before they begin actual processing. For processing and issuing your refund, Illinois is currently estimating 4-6 weeks for electronic returns (longer for paper returns). If your return still shows "Processing" after 3-4 days, you might want to check the Illinois Department of Revenue website to verify they received it. But at just 48 hours, this is within normal timeframes.

I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the past 3 years and always see this exact pattern! Federal gets accepted super quick (usually within hours), but my state (also Illinois) stays in "processing" for days. Last year my federal acceptance came in like 4 hours, but the state acceptance took almost 5 days to come through.Nothing to worry about - it's just how their systems work. Illinois is notoriously slow with both accepting returns and processing refunds compared to the IRS. But FreeTaxUSA has always been reliable in my experience!

After dealing with a similar issue last year (state return stuck in processing for over a week), I decided to just call the IL Dept of Revenue directly. Of course their phone lines were completely jammed... stayed on hold for over 2 hours before getting disconnected. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual human at the state tax agency in about 15 minutes instead of waiting on hold all day. Here's their demo video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed my return was in their system but just hadn't been updated in the online status tool yet. Totally worth it for the peace of mind rather than stressing for days wondering if something was wrong with my filing.

I had the same concern last year when my federal was accepted but my state (Michigan) showed processing for almost a week. I used https://taxr.ai to check my filing status - you can upload your tax documents there and it analyzes whether there are any potential issues with your return. It confirmed my state return was in the system but just moving slower through their validation process. Saved me a lot of stress wondering if I needed to refile or contact the state agency. My state refund eventually came about 3 weeks after filing.

I'm confused - isn't the acceptance message just saying they received it? I thought that didn't mean your return was approved or that you're definitely getting a refund. My tax guy told me the acceptance is just the first step, and they still have to review everything before approving the refund. Is that wrong??Also, I filed 3 weeks ago and still don't have my refund yet, so I'm starting to worry something's wrong with mine too. Used TaxAct this year.

I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the past 3 years and always see this exact pattern! Federal gets accepted super quick (usually within hours), but my state (also Illinois) stays in "processing" for days. Last year my federal acceptance came in like 4 hours, but the state acceptance took almost 5 days to come through. Nothing to worry about - it's just how their systems work. Illinois is notoriously slow with both accepting returns and processing refunds compared to the IRS. But FreeTaxUSA has always been reliable in my experience!

This timing difference is completely normal and expected. Here's what's happening:The IRS has invested heavily in modernizing their electronic filing systems in recent years, allowing for rapid initial validation of returns. Their "acceptance" status means your return has passed basic validation checks.State tax agencies like Illinois typically have:1. Smaller budgets for processing infrastructure2. Different validation requirements3. Integration with various state-specific programs and creditsFor your Illinois return, the standard processing time for e-filed returns is 4-6 weeks, though many are processed faster. You can check your refund status directly through the Illinois Department of Revenue's "Where's My Refund" tool on their website.Regarding FreeTaxUSA vs. TurboTax - both transmit your returns to the same government systems, so the software choice doesn't affect processing times. The status updates in FreeTaxUSA are pulled from the same government APIs, so they're as reliable as any other tax software.

After dealing with a similar issue last year (state return stuck in processing for over a week), I decided to just call the IL Dept of Revenue directly. Of course their phone lines were completely jammed... stayed on hold for over 2 hours before getting disconnected. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual human at the state tax agency in about 15 minutes instead of waiting on hold all day. Here's their demo video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent confirmed my return was in their system but just hadn't been updated in the online status tool yet. Totally worth it for the peace of mind rather than stressing for days wondering if something was wrong with my filing.

I'm confused - isn't the acceptance message just saying they received it? I thought that didn't mean your return was approved or that you're definitely getting a refund. My tax guy told me the acceptance is just the first step, and they still have to review everything before approving the refund. Is that wrong?? Also, I filed 3 weeks ago and still don't have my refund yet, so I'm starting to worry something's wrong with mine too. Used TaxAct this year.

The whole separate state/federal tax system is RIDICULOUS and deliberately confusing! Why do we need to file taxes twice?? The IRS and state should talk to each other and just handle it all together. Every other developed country has a simpler tax system. I moved from California to Illinois last year and now I have to file partial year returns for BOTH states plus federal. THREE different tax returns! Complete waste of time and money. And they all take different amounts of time to process because of course they do. Nothing can ever be simple or efficient.

This timing difference is completely normal and expected. Here's what's happening: The IRS has invested heavily in modernizing their electronic filing systems in recent years, allowing for rapid initial validation of returns. Their "acceptance" status means your return has passed basic validation checks. State tax agencies like Illinois typically have: 1. Smaller budgets for processing infrastructure 2. Different validation requirements 3. Integration with various state-specific programs and credits For your Illinois return, the standard processing time for e-filed returns is 4-6 weeks, though many are processed faster. You can check your refund status directly through the Illinois Department of Revenue's "Where's My Refund" tool on their website. Regarding FreeTaxUSA vs. TurboTax - both transmit your returns to the same government systems, so the software choice doesn't affect processing times. The status updates in FreeTaxUSA are pulled from the same government APIs, so they're as reliable as any other tax software.

its totally normal dude. my federal was accepted in like 2 hrs this year but my state (michigan) took almost a week just to say "received" and then another 3 weeks for the actual refund. states are just slower than the irs with the whole process