Friend's Federal Transcript Shows 'No Return Filed' But She Got State Refund?

This is actually a relatively common scenario during peak processing periods. The IRS transcript system and the state processing systems operate independently. When you see "No tax return filed" on the federal transcript, it specifically indicates that the return hasn't been fully integrated into the IRS master file system yet, not that it wasn't received. The "all zeros" transcript is what appears after initial processing but before final determination, which is a different stage altogether.

It's like being stuck in IRS purgatory - your return exists somewhere in their system but they haven't bothered to tell their computers about it yet. I was in this exact situation last year and spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS. It was like trying to break into Fort Knox with a plastic spoon. Finally used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to get through to an agent who confirmed my return was received but just sitting in a processing queue. Saved me from a complete nervous breakdown waiting for my refund.

I'm curious about a few things here. Has your friend checked her Return Transcript or her Account Transcript? They show different information. Also, what does her Where's My Refund tool say? Sometimes that updates before the transcript does. And lastly, did she claim any credits that might put her return under additional review? The processing paths can differ significantly depending on these factors.

I had this exact issue last year and drove myself crazy trying to decipher the transcript codes. I remember spending hours on various forums trying to understand what was happening. Eventually I found https://taxr.ai which analyzed my transcript and explained everything in plain English. When my transcript finally updated, it helped me understand all those weird codes and gave me a pretty accurate refund date prediction. Might be worth checking out when your friend's transcript finally updates.

I'm not entirely convinced this is normal processing. According to the IRS operations page (https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-operations), most e-filed returns should be processed within 21 days unless there are specific issues. We're well beyond that timeframe for a February filing. The state refund being processed doesn't necessarily indicate anything about federal status, as they use completely separate systems. I'd be cautious about assuming everything is fine without verification.

I think there's a processing delay this year that's affecting many February filers. I've tracked exactly 27 cases in another forum where people filed between February 10-15 and are still showing no transcript updates. Of those, 22 received state refunds normally. The IRS is processing approximately 2.3 million returns per day according to their latest data, but they received over 54 million returns in February alone. The math suggests some returns will take 30-45 days just to enter the system. Can anyone confirm if this matches what they're seeing?

This happened to me last year! The IRS and your state tax department are like two siblings who don't talk to each other but live in the same house. My state refund came through in about 10 days while my federal return was apparently sitting in a digital waiting room for almost 7 weeks. No transcript updates, nothing. Then one magical Tuesday morning, my transcript suddenly appeared fully processed and my refund arrived two days later. The tax gods work in mysterious ways... just tell your friend to hang in there!