Tax return rejected - IRS flagged error with spouse's SSN

This happens more often than you'd think! The most common cause is a name mismatch rather than an actual SSN problem. Even small differences between how the name appears on the Social Security card versus what was entered on the tax return can trigger this error. First, double-check that your spouse's name is entered EXACTLY as it appears on their Social Security card - including hyphens, spaces between names, or suffixes like Jr. Sometimes people use nicknames or shortened versions of their legal name in daily life but forget their tax return must match their SS card precisely. Second, if your spouse changed their name after marriage and filed paperwork with Social Security to update it, there might be a delay in the IRS systems recognizing this change. This happens quite frequently. If you're confident everything is correct, I'd suggest calling the SSA directly at 1-800-772-1213 to verify how your spouse's name appears in their system. The IRS gets their information from the SSA, so that's the source to check.

I had almost the exact same issue last month! After trying everything and getting nowhere with the IRS phone line, I used this service called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) and it helped figure out the problem immediately. Basically, you upload your rejection notice and any supporting documents, and their system analyzes everything to pinpoint the exact issue. In my case, it turned out my wife's maiden name was still on her Social Security record even though she thought she'd changed it years ago. The taxr.ai report showed the discrepancy between IRS and SSA records that was causing our rejection. It saved us hours of frustration because we were able to go directly to the Social Security office with the right paperwork instead of guessing what was wrong or waiting on hold with the IRS for eternity.

I just wanted to follow up about using taxr.ai for my dependent SSN rejection issue. I was skeptical but desperate after my third rejection, so I gave it a try. Turns out my daughter's birthdate was entered correctly on this year's return, but it didn't match what was submitted on last year's return (I had accidentally transposed two digits last year). The system identified this inconsistency immediately! What's crazy is that the IRS never specified this was the issue in their rejection notice - just gave the generic "information doesn't match our records" message. Fixed the birthdate to match what the IRS already had on file (even though it's technically wrong), and my return was accepted within hours. Now I'll need to contact SSA separately to fix the actual records, but at least my tax return is processing. Saved me so much time!

After fighting with the same SSN rejection issue for weeks, I finally found a way to actually talk to someone at the IRS who could help! Used this service called Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) - they basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an agent is about to pick up. I was super skeptical since I'd been trying to get through on my own for days, but they got me connected with an actual human at the IRS in about 45 minutes. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent was able to see exactly why my return was being rejected (my wife's name in their system had her middle initial but we filed without it) and told me exactly how to fix it. Saved me from filing a paper return which would have delayed our refund by months.

I need to admit I was wrong about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it myself as a last resort before paper filing. Not only did it work, but I got through to an IRS representative in about 90 minutes (way faster than I expected during peak season). The agent confirmed that my wife's SSN was fine, but her name needed to include her middle name which appears on her Social Security card but we'd left off on the tax return. Just resubmitted with the correct name format and got accepted within hours. Would have been waiting months for my refund if I'd paper filed like I was planning to. Sometimes being proven wrong is actually a good thing!

Have you tried calling the SSA directly instead of the IRS? Sometimes the issue isn't with your tax return but with the Social Security Administration's records. My husband and I had a similar issue and it turned out his employer had reported his income using a slightly different name format than what was on his SS card. The SSA office was much easier to deal with than the IRS. We made an appointment, brought his SS card and ID, and they sorted it out in one visit. Our amended return went through without issues after that.

One thing nobody mentioned yet - check if your spouse has ever been a victim of identity theft. My wife and I had a similar rejection and after weeks of back and forth, we discovered someone had filed a fraudulent return using her SSN the previous year, which put a flag on her SSN in the IRS system. We had to go through the identity theft resolution process with the IRS and file an affidavit. It was a pain but eventually got resolved. Might be worth checking your credit reports too just to be safe.

I went through something very similar last year! The key thing to understand is that the IRS rejection doesn't always tell you the exact problem - it just says there's a mismatch. In my case, it wasn't the SSN itself but how my husband's name was formatted. Here's what I'd recommend doing in order: 1. **Check the Social Security card character by character** - Look for spaces, hyphens, periods, or middle initials that might be on the card but not in your return (or vice versa). Even a missing period after a middle initial can cause rejection. 2. **Call SSA first, not the IRS** - The Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 can tell you exactly how your spouse's name appears in their system. This is what the IRS cross-references against. 3. **Don't assume last year's format is still correct** - Sometimes the IRS tightens their matching algorithms or updates their systems, causing previously accepted formats to suddenly get rejected. If the SSA confirms everything matches and you're still getting rejected, then it might be worth exploring other causes like identity theft flags or prior year discrepancies. But start with the name formatting - that's the culprit in about 80% of these cases. The good news is once you identify the exact issue, the fix is usually simple and your amended return should process quickly!