IRS Code 420 Examination & 810 Refund Freeze on 2025 Return with EIC - Filed January, Notice 02-17, Timeline Help Needed

I got code 420 "Examination of tax return" on my transcript dated 01-31-2025 and now have a refund freeze (code 810) showing up. I claimed EIC (code 768 for Earned Income Credit) and filed in January. My transcript shows the examination started 01-31-2025, and I received a notice (code 971) on 02-17-2025. The processing date shows as Feb. 17, 2025, with cycle number 75221-421-16710-5. Here's the full information from my transcript: RETURN DUE DATE OR RETURN RECEIVED DATE (WHICHEVER IS LATER) Apr. 15, 2025 PROCESSING DATE Feb. 17, 2025 TRANSACTIONS CODE EXPLANATION OF TRANSACTION CYCLE DATE AMOUNT 150 Tax return filed 20250505 02-17-2025 75221-421-16710-5 766 Credit to your account 04-15-2025 768 Earned income credit 04-15-2025 810 Refund freeze 02-17-2025 $0.00 971 Notice issued 02-17-2025 $0.00 420 Examination of tax return 01-31-2025 $0.00 My transcript shows "This Product Contains Sensitive Taxpayer Data" at the bottom. The information section at the top shows: EXEMPTIONS: FILING STATUS: ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME: TAXABLE INCOME: TAX PER RETURN: SE TAXABLE INCOME TAXPAYER: SE TAXABLE INCOME SPOUSE: TOTAL SELF EMPLOYMENT TAX: Looking at my transcript codes in order: - 420: Examination of tax return (01-31-2025) - 810: Refund freeze (02-17-2025) - 971: Notice issued (02-17-2025) - 766: Credit to account (pending 04-15-2025) - 768: Earned income credit (pending 04-15-2025) - 150: Tax return filed (showing future cycle date 20250505 02-17-2025) Anyone else dealing with this examination and freeze situation? How long did it take to resolve? Really concerned about this since I'm waiting on my EIC. I filed in January but it seems like everything is delayed until April now with these holds. The notice wasn't very clear about what's happening or why my return is being examined.

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Dylan Cooper

The transcript shows a sequence of IRS actions starting with an examination (Code 420) initiated on January 31st, 2025, followed by a refund freeze (Code 810) and notice issuance (Code 971) on February 17th. This pattern is typical of an Earned Income Credit verification process, confirmed by the presence of Code 768 for EIC. Your cycle number 75221-421-16710-5 indicates your return is being processed in the 21st week of 2025. The processing date of February 17th, 2025, reflects when the IRS began working on your return, while the pending credits (766 and 768) are scheduled for April 15th, 2025 - the standard tax return due date. The $0.00 amounts shown next to certain codes suggest no additional tax liability has been determined yet. The examination is likely focused specifically on verifying your EIC eligibility rather than broader tax issues. These types of EIC verification reviews typically take 45-120 days to resolve. It's important to watch for and promptly respond to any IRS correspondence (referenced by Code 971) requesting additional documentation to support your EIC claim.

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