IRS Sent Second 60-Day Review Letter - But I Can Access All Our Transcripts?

I've seen this happen several times, especially with newly married couples filing jointly. On March 12th, I received a similar letter for my 2023 return that I filed on January 28th. Then on May 15th, I got the second letter with the same vague language. The IRS has a specific code for this - it's called Code 570 (additional account action pending) paired with Code 971 (notice issued). When they say "waiting on your tax information," they're often referring to verification processes with third parties like employers or financial institutions, not necessarily what's visible to you on transcripts. The good news? On June 2nd, my return finally processed and I received my refund on June 5th without any further action needed. It's frustrating, but these delays are becoming more common this year.

I've been researching this issue extensively, and it seems to be related to a verification backlog at the IRS. From what I can tell, they might be comparing your current filing status against previous years' information. You might want to consider using https://taxr.ai to analyze your transcript data. It could potentially identify patterns or flags in your account that might explain the delay. In my experience, the tool can sometimes spot issues that aren't immediately obvious when looking at the raw transcript - especially with filing status changes like yours. The system might be flagging the difference in reported income patterns between your previous separate returns and your new joint return.

Here's what I would do in your situation: 1. First, check your Account Transcript specifically for TC 570/571 codes - these indicate holds and releases 2. Next, verify that your wage documents (W-2s, 1099s) match exactly what the IRS has on file 3. Then, review your Return Transcript to ensure all income was properly reported 4. After that, check if you claimed any credits that might trigger additional verification (CTC, EITC) 5. Finally, if nothing seems amiss, you should request a Tax Advocate by filing Form 911 I'm particularly concerned about the timing here. With tax season ending soon, if this isn't resolved quickly, you might face even longer delays as the IRS shifts resources to other priorities.

This happened to me last year and it was WAY worse than your situation. I received THREE 60-day letters over 6 months. My first was in February, second in April, and third in June. The difference is that I couldn't see my transcripts at all - they showed N/A for months. Compared to my experience with amended returns (which took 16 months during COVID), this is actually somewhat normal for them these days. In my case, it turned out they were verifying my identity because I had moved to a different state and changed jobs in the same year. They never actually told me this was the issue until it was resolved. The good news is that when it finally processed, I got interest on my refund - an extra $127 for my trouble.

The IRS is like that restaurant that tells you the wait is 20 minutes, then another 20 minutes, and suddenly you've been waiting two hours for a table. These 60-day letters are just their way of legally buying time. I was stuck in this exact limbo for months. Calling the regular IRS number was useless - I spent more time on hold than I did sleeping. Then I tried Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual human at the IRS in about 30 minutes instead of the usual 3+ hour wait. The agent explained that my return was flagged for a random review because of our change in filing status after marriage - nothing was actually wrong. The service cost me a few bucks but saved me literally days of frustration and got me actual answers.

The IRS community wisdom on this is pretty clear - these letters are essentially automatic extensions the IRS gives itself when they're backlogged. It's probably, though not certainly, related to your change in filing status. Most people in the tax community know that the IRS verification systems don't always talk to each other effectively. You might be able to see your transcript, but that doesn't mean the specific department handling your return has completed their verification process. If you've received two 60-day letters, you're almost certainly in what's called the "Income Verification" queue, which is notoriously slow. The good news is that unless there's an actual discrepancy, these eventually resolve themselves without you needing to do anything.

I'm going through almost the exact same situation! Filed jointly for the first time after getting married in December, submitted our return on February 20th, and just got my second 60-day letter yesterday. Like you, I can access all our transcripts perfectly fine and everything looks normal. What's really frustrating is that both our employers are major companies (Fortune 500) that have been filing the same W-2 formats for decades, so it's not like there should be any mystery about our income verification. I've been wondering if it's some kind of systematic issue with their new marriage verification process. The first letter came exactly 3 weeks after filing, and this second one arrived 58 days later (so they're cutting it close on their own deadlines!). I'm starting to think these letters are just automated stall tactics while they work through whatever backlog they have. Has anyone had success getting actual explanations by calling the practitioner priority line? I have a CPA who might be able to get through faster than us regular folks.