Complete IRS Transcript Reading Guide: Understanding Codes, Dates, and Refund Status for 2024-2025

Been seeing a lot of confusion about transcripts lately. After dealing with the IRS for 3 years and learning the hard way, here's what I've learned about reading transcripts correctly. First, understand that a negative number is a credit (don't freak out!). ANY MINUS SIGN SHOWN BELOW SIGNIFIES A CREDIT AMOUNT. This is super important because people often misunderstand this. For the ACCOUNT BALANCE section, remember this isn't a refund. Look at the "AS OF" date (in my case March 25, 2024) for both ACCRUED INTEREST and ACCRUED PENALTY. The ACCOUNT BALANCE PLUS ACCRUALS shows your expected payoff amount, not your refund amount. The cycle codes are crucial - the last 2 numbers tell you when your transcripts update: - 01: daily transcripts update on Monday - 02: daily transcripts update on Tuesday - 03: daily transcripts update on Wednesday - 04: daily transcripts update on Thursday - 05: weekly transcripts update on Friday Important note: WMR (Where's My Refund) always updates the day AFTER your transcripts! In the INFORMATION section, you'll see details from your return like: - EXEMPTIONS: number of people on return (mine shows 03) - FILING STATUS: (mine is Head of Household) - ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME - TAXABLE INCOME - TAX PER RETURN - SE TAXABLE INCOME for TAXPAYER and SPOUSE - TOTAL SELF EMPLOYMENT TAX The RETURN DUE DATE OR RETURN RECEIVED DATE (WHICHEVER IS LATER) shows April 15, 2024, and my PROCESSING DATE is March 25, 2024. The TRANSACTIONS section is where the codes matter a lot: - Code 150: Tax return filed (tax liability) - mine shows cycle 20241005 with date 03-25-2024 - Code 806: W-2 or 1099 withholding - dated 04-15-2024 - Code 766: Credit to your account - dated 04-15-2024 (this is the last day of tax season when all credits post) - Code 768: Earned income credit (EIC) - dated 04-15-2024 - Code 846: Refund issued - dated 03-13-2024 (THIS is your actual refund date!) Transaction codes in the 700s usually mean adjustments, 800s are about refunds, and 900s usually mean something needs review. The dates beside them aren't always what you think they mean - for example, the 766 and 768 dates are NOT refund dates! The cycle code (mine is 20241005) is an 8-digit number where the first 2 digits show what year it is (2024) and the next 2 show which week of the year your return is processing (10). Hope this helps everyone understand their transcripts better!