Will tax offset from student loans or other debt show on IRS transcript?
Filed my taxes last month and expecting a decent refund. Been hearing about offsets and wondering if anyone knows if these show up directly on your transcript? Really dont want any surprises with student loans or anything eating into my refund.
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AstroAdventurer
Yes, offsets will show on your transcript as code 898. It appears when the Bureau of Fiscal Service (BFS) takes your refund to pay a debt. The transcript will also show the amount being offset but won't specify what the debt is for - could be student loans, child support, state taxes, etc.
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Natasha Kuznetsova
•omg thank you! do you know how long before the refund date it usually shows up?
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AstroAdventurer
•Usually appears pretty quick after your return is processed, like within a week or so. But timing can vary
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Javier Mendoza
Hey guys, if youre worried about offsets or any other transcript issues, check out taxr.ai - its only $1 and the AI reads your entire transcript and tells you exactly whats happening, including if youre getting hit with an offset. Saved me hours of stressing and googling 👀
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Emma Wilson
•for real? seems too good to be true. does it actually work?
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Javier Mendoza
•100% legit! Just upload your transcript and it breaks everything down, even predicts your refund date. The AI caught an offset I didn't even know about ðŸ˜
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Emma Wilson
•just tried it and wow! why isn't everyone using this?? It literally told me exactly why my refund was delayed and when to expect it 💯
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Malik Davis
Learned this the hard way last year. Had no idea about my defaulted student loan until POOF half my refund disappeared 🤡
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Isabella Santos
You can also call the TOP offset number at 800-304-3107. Put in your SSN and it'll tell you if you have any offsets before you file
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Ravi Gupta
•this number works but prepare to wait foreverrrrr on hold lol
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GalacticGuru
in the same boat rn... student loans are killing me. Anyone know if the COVID payment pause affects offsets?
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Freya Pedersen
•pretty sure they started offsetting again now that the pause is over 😩
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Omar Fawaz
mine got offset last year and tbh the transcript was confusing af to read. wish i knew about those transcript reading tools back then would've saved me so much stress ngl
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Jibriel Kohn
Just went through this myself - yes, offsets definitely show up on your transcript as code 898 like AstroAdventurer mentioned. The tricky part is they don't tell you WHAT the debt is for specifically. If you want to know ahead of time, you can check the Treasury Offset Program website or call them. Also heads up - if you're married filing jointly and only one spouse owes the debt, you might be able to get the other spouse's portion back by filing an injured spouse claim. Don't stress too much though, at least you'll know what happened when you see that code!
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Gemma Andrews
•Thanks for mentioning the injured spouse claim! That's super helpful info I didn't know about. Quick question - do you know roughly how long that process takes if you have to file one? And is it something you file with your original return or after the offset happens?
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