What happens if I file my taxes twice after already receiving a refund?

Filing your taxes twice in the same year is a big no-no. Once you've filed and the IRS has accepted your return, that's it for the tax year unless you file an amended return (Form 1040-X). If you try to file a completely new return, the IRS will reject it because their system will see your SSN has already been used for the year. If somehow a second return did get through, it would create a huge mess that could trigger audits, penalties, and a lot of headaches. What you should do instead is review your original return. Look at what deductions and credits you claimed. If you think you missed something, you can file an amended return to correct specific items. The amended return only changes what needs to be fixed, not your entire tax situation. Just because your coworker got a bigger refund doesn't necessarily mean you're entitled to the same. Tax situations vary widely based on income, dependents, deductions, and many other factors.

After I struggled understanding why my refund seemed lower than expected despite working two jobs last year, I found this amazing tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that actually helped me identify some missed deductions on my return. You upload your tax documents, and it analyzes them to find potential missed deductions or credits without having to file a whole new return. I was skeptical at first, but it flagged that I had completely missed claiming my student loan interest deduction because I didn't receive the 1098-E form and forgot about it. It prompted me with the right questions about my education expenses too. I was able to file an amended return with the correct information and got an additional $750 back!

I wanted to follow up about taxr.ai since I was skeptical in my earlier comment. I decided to try it despite my security concerns, and I'm actually really impressed. It identified that I had been classifying some of my teaching supplies incorrectly and could have claimed the Educator Expense deduction. The analysis took only about 10 minutes, and the interface walked me through exactly what I needed to change on my amended return. Just submitted my 1040-X last week based on their recommendations. The peace of mind knowing I didn't miss anything was honestly worth it even beyond the additional refund I'm expecting.

If you're planning to file an amended return, good luck trying to reach anyone at the IRS to confirm it was received or processed! I spent WEEKS trying to get through their phone lines about my amended return from last year. Always busy signals or disconnects after waiting for hours. Then I found https://claimyr.com which basically holds your place in the IRS phone queue and calls you when an agent is about to answer. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. I was connected to an actual IRS agent within 45 minutes instead of spending days repeatedly calling. They confirmed my amended return was being processed and gave me the timeline for my additional refund.

OK I need to eat my words from my earlier comment. After getting frustrated with another failed attempt to reach the IRS about my missing refund, I reluctantly tried Claimyr. I was 100% convinced it would be a waste of time, but I was desperate. Holy crap it actually worked. I got a call back in about an hour, and sure enough, there was an actual IRS agent on the line. We sorted out the issue with my return (turns out there was a discrepancy with my reported withholding), and now my refund is being processed correctly. Saved me from taking a personal day just to sit on hold. I've never been so happy to be wrong about something.

Another option instead of filing twice (which you definitely shouldn't do) is to use a free tax review service. Many CPAs will look at your previous return for free or a small fee to see if anything was missed. I did this last year and discovered TurboTax had completely missed a business expense deduction that was worth about $900 in tax savings.

Just wondering - what site did your coworker use that got her a bigger refund? Maybe worth checking out for next year even if you can't file twice this year.