Transcript Not Showing Child Tax Credit But I Have Tax Topic 152 and PATH Act Status

This happens ALL THE TIME with the PATH Act. According to the IRS website, tax topic 152 just means you're claiming refundable credits, but your transcript won't show the actual credits until they finish processing. Check the cycle code on your transcript - if you don't have one yet, they haven't even started the verification process. PATH Act returns are held until at least February 15th, and many aren't processed until mid-March or later.

Think of your tax return like a train journey. Right now, your train has left the station (you filed) and the conductor has checked your ticket (tax topic 152), but you're waiting at a scheduled stop (PATH Act review). The transcript is like the station's arrival board - it won't show your train's final arrival time until it's cleared that stop and is back on the main track. Many people panic at this stage, but it's just part of the normal journey for anyone claiming child-related credits. Give it another 1-2 weeks before worrying.

I went through this exact same situation last month! My transcript showed absolutely nothing about my child tax credit for weeks. Tax topic 152 just means you're claiming refundable credits. After trying for days to reach the IRS (busy signals and 2+ hour hold times), I finally used Claimyr.com to get through. The agent confirmed everything was fine - they just hadn't processed my CTC verification yet. Got my refund with full credits about 10 days later. Sometimes you just need to talk to a human to get peace of mind!

I filed on January 29th, 2024 and had the exact same issue. My transcript showed absolutely nothing about child tax credits until February 24th. Then suddenly everything updated at once. The PATH Act holds refunds with certain credits until February 15th at minimum, but most returns with children don't actually process until late February or March. On March 1st, I got my full refund with all child tax credits included. The transcript system and WMR tool don't sync up properly during this time of year.

Let me explain exactly what's happening with your return: Step 1: Your return was accepted (shown by tax topic 152) Step 2: It's been flagged for PATH Act processing (required for all returns with child-related credits) Step 3: Your return is waiting in the verification queue Step 4: Once verification begins, your transcript will update with codes 570/571 Step 5: After verification completes, code 846 will appear with your refund date The empty transcript is completely normal at this stage. About 80% of returns claiming Child Tax Credit go through this exact process. Your credits aren't missing - they just haven't been processed yet.

You might want to check if you possibly entered something incorrectly on your return. I'm not saying you did, but sometimes a small typo can cause the system to not recognize your eligibility for the credit. It might be worth, if you can afford it, having a tax professional review your return. Although, to be honest, it's probably just the normal PATH Act delay that everyone with kids experiences. The IRS is just incredibly slow with processing these credits, especially during peak season.

I had this happen. Check your Return transcript. Not Account transcript. Return transcript shows what you claimed. Account transcript shows what IRS processed. Big difference. Many people look at wrong one. PATH Act delays are normal. Nothing to worry about yet.

Oh my gosh, I freaked out about this EXACT thing last month! 😱 I was checking my account transcript and saw NOTHING about my child tax credit! I was so upset thinking they denied my credits! Then someone told me to check my RETURN transcript instead of my ACCOUNT transcript and there it was - all my claimed credits listed! The account transcript won't show the credits until they finish processing your return. I was stressing for nothing! 😅