Mystery APA Treas 310 Misc Direct Deposit - Connected to Form SS-8?

The "APA Treas 310" code is just a general transaction code for direct deposits from the Treasury Department, and the "Misc" portion suggests it's not a regular tax refund. Based on your situation, this does sound like it could be related to your Form SS-8 determination. When the IRS rules in favor of worker classification as an employee (rather than independent contractor), they sometimes issue refunds for the employer portion of self-employment taxes you may have paid. Since you filed a Form SS-8, if they determined the person should have been classified as an employee, they might be refunding you the employer portion of FICA taxes (7.65%) that you shouldn't have had to pay. You should receive a letter from the IRS explaining the deposit within 1-2 weeks of the deposit. This is standard practice - the money often arrives before the explanation does.

I went through something similar last year and discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) really helped me sort through unexpected deposits. I had a mystery deposit that turned out to be related to an amended return I didn't even realize had been processed. Their system analyzed my transcript and explained exactly what each code meant and where the money came from. Saved me hours of stressing and calling the IRS.

I was super skeptical about taxr.ai at first, but after waiting three weeks with no explanation for a random $1,763 deposit, I gave it a try. Uploaded my transcript and it immediately identified that I had overpaid my estimated taxes for Q2 2022, but the refund got delayed due to a processing error on their end. The deposit was actually coded differently than a standard refund which is why I was confused. The system explained everything clearly and showed me where in my transcript the evidence was. Saved me from an hour-long wait with the IRS just to get a basic explanation. Way more helpful than I expected for interpreting those confusing codes.

If you need a definitive answer, you might want to call the IRS directly, but good luck getting through their phone system. I discovered Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) after spending literal days trying to reach someone about a similar mystery deposit. Check out how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes rather than the "we're too busy, call back another time" message I kept getting for weeks. The agent was able to look up the exact reason for my deposit and confirmed it was related to an employment determination I had requested months earlier. Totally worth it when you need definitive answers directly from the source.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but Claimyr actually worked. After posting that skeptical comment, I was still stuck trying to figure out a similar mystery deposit situation and decided to try it as a last resort. Got connected to an IRS agent in about 25 minutes (on a Monday morning, no less). The agent confirmed my deposit was related to an employment tax adjustment from a Form SS-8 determination made two months ago. The letter explaining it had been sent but to my old address. She was able to order me a new copy of the determination letter and confirmation of the refund amount. Would've never gotten this resolved otherwise since the IRS kept hanging up on me when calling directly due to "high call volume.

I had a similar situation last year with an SS-8 determination. It took about 5 months after they made the determination for the refund to show up, and like you, it appeared as "APA Treas 310 Misc" in my account. The determination letter came about 3 weeks after the deposit. One heads up - if they determined in your favor on the SS-8, you might need to file amended returns (1040-X) for the affected years to fully correct your tax situation. The initial refund might just cover the employer portion of FICA taxes, but there could be other adjustments needed for your income taxes based on this new classification.

Random thought - check your state tax authority too. When the IRS makes these kinds of adjustments, sometimes the state automatically gets notified and processes a corresponding refund for state taxes. I had a similar situation with a contractor/employee determination and got an IRS deposit followed by a smaller state refund about 3 weeks later. The state deposit had a completely different label though.

I went through almost the exact same situation about 8 months ago! Filed an SS-8 for a contractor determination and then got a mystery "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit that had me completely confused. Turns out it was indeed related to the SS-8 - the IRS had determined the person should have been classified as an employee, so they refunded me the employer portion of Social Security and Medicare taxes I had overpaid. The timing sounds about right too - my SS-8 took about 4-5 months to process, and then the refund showed up another month later. The explanation letter came about 2 weeks after the deposit, which cleared up all my confusion. One thing to note: if this is what it is, you'll probably want to keep detailed records because you may need to file amended returns for other affected years. The initial refund might just cover one tax year, but if you paid self-employment taxes on income from this person across multiple years, you could be entitled to additional refunds. Definitely worth waiting for that explanation letter before spending it, but this sounds very similar to my experience!

This is exactly what happened to me! I filed an SS-8 about 6 months ago for a similar contractor classification issue, and just last week I got the same "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit that had me completely puzzled. Based on everyone's experiences here, it sounds like this is definitely related to your SS-8 determination. The timing matches up perfectly - mine took about 5-6 months to process before the refund appeared. I'm still waiting for the explanation letter, but after reading through all these responses, I'm much more confident that this is legitimate. One thing I'm curious about - for those who went through this process, did the amount of the refund give you any indication of which tax years it covered? I'm trying to figure out if this initial deposit covers just one year or if it's a combined refund for multiple years. The amount I received seems too large for just one year's worth of employer FICA taxes, but I can't tell for sure without the official explanation. Thanks for posting this question - it's been incredibly helpful to see so many people who went through the same confusing experience!

Based on all the experiences shared here, this definitely sounds like it's related to your SS-8 determination! I went through something very similar about a year ago - filed an SS-8 for a worker classification issue and then got that exact same "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit that had me completely stumped. The timeline matches perfectly with what everyone else is describing. My SS-8 took about 4-5 months to process, then the refund appeared about a month later, followed by the explanation letter 2-3 weeks after that. The letter confirmed it was a refund of the employer portion of FICA taxes (7.65%) that I had overpaid when treating the person as a contractor instead of an employee. My advice would be to keep the money in a separate account until you get the official explanation letter - that way you know exactly what it's for and whether there are additional steps you need to take. In my case, I ended up filing amended returns for two other tax years to get additional refunds, which was totally worth the paperwork. The waiting is definitely nerve-wracking, but based on everyone's experiences here, it sounds like you're in good hands. The IRS may be slow, but they seem to be consistent with how they handle these SS-8 refunds!

I'm dealing with a similar mystery deposit situation right now! Got an "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit about two weeks ago and have been scratching my head trying to figure out what it's for. I filed an SS-8 about 5 months ago for a worker classification determination, so reading through everyone's experiences here is giving me a lot of hope that this is finally the result of that process. The amount seems roughly consistent with what the employer portion of FICA taxes would be for the income in question, which makes me even more confident this is SS-8 related. Like others have mentioned, I'm keeping the money in a separate account until I get some official documentation explaining what it's for. One thing I'm curious about - has anyone had experience with how long the explanation letter typically takes to arrive after the deposit? I'm getting antsy waiting for confirmation, but it sounds like 2-3 weeks is pretty standard based on what people are sharing here. This whole thread has been incredibly helpful for putting my mind at ease about this unexpected windfall!

This is incredibly helpful to read! I'm going through almost the exact same situation right now - filed an SS-8 about 6 months ago and just received a mystery "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit that matches what the employer portion of FICA would be for the income in question. The timeline everyone's describing is spot on with my experience. It's such a relief to see so many people went through this same confusing process and it worked out. I was starting to wonder if I should contact the IRS or just wait it out, but based on all these responses, it sounds like the explanation letter should arrive in the next week or two. One thing I'm planning to do while I wait is start organizing all my documentation from that contractor relationship - 1099s, payment records, original tax returns, etc. It sounds like if the determination went in my favor, I'll likely want to file amended returns for other affected years to get additional refunds. Better to have everything ready to go once I get the official letter! Thanks for posting this question - it's amazing how many of us are dealing with the same mystery deposit situation. The IRS really should send the explanation letter with or before the deposit to avoid all this confusion!

This thread has been incredibly reassuring! I'm actually in a very similar situation - filed an SS-8 about 7 months ago for a worker classification issue and just received an "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit yesterday that had me completely baffled until I found this discussion. The timeline and circumstances everyone's describing match my situation almost perfectly. The deposit amount is roughly what I'd expect for the employer portion of FICA taxes on the income in question, and the timing aligns with what others have experienced - SS-8 processing taking 4-6 months, then the refund appearing about a month later. Reading through all these experiences has given me so much confidence that this is legitimate and related to my SS-8 determination. I was honestly worried it might be some kind of error that I'd eventually have to pay back, but seeing how consistently the IRS has handled these cases for everyone else is really comforting. Like others have mentioned, I'm keeping the money in a separate account until I get the official explanation letter, which sounds like should arrive in the next 2-3 weeks based on everyone's timelines. I'm also going to start gathering all my documentation from that contractor relationship now so I'm ready to file amended returns for other years if needed. Thanks so much for starting this discussion - it's amazing how many people are going through this exact same confusing experience. The IRS really should improve their communication around these refunds!

This entire thread has been such a lifesaver! I'm dealing with the exact same situation right now - got an "APA Treas 310 Misc" deposit three days ago that completely threw me off. I filed an SS-8 about 6 months ago for a contractor classification issue, and reading everyone's experiences here has finally put the pieces together. The timing and amount match perfectly with what everyone else is describing. My deposit amount is almost exactly what 7.65% (employer portion of FICA) would be for the income I reported from that contractor relationship. I was honestly starting to worry this was some kind of error that would come back to haunt me! Based on all the consistent experiences shared here, I'm confident this is my SS-8 determination finally coming through. I've moved the money to a separate account and I'm gathering all my documentation from that contractor relationship (1099s, payment records, original returns) so I'll be ready to file amended returns for other years if needed. The waiting for the explanation letter is definitely nerve-wracking, but seeing how systematically the IRS has handled these cases for everyone gives me a lot of confidence. Thanks for starting this discussion - it's amazing how many of us are going through this identical confusing experience. The IRS really needs to send explanation letters WITH the deposits to save everyone this stress!