IRS has no record of my filing

[Jessforgets]

I'm currently going through the same thing. Was your issue ever resolved?

[HeatherPLO]

@Jessforgets

Is this for your 2020 return?  

You will need to reach out directly to the IRS if you are needing assistance with your 2020 return or you are getting a "No Record of Your Filing" message.  To reach out to the IRS, please follow the steps below:

IRS:  800-829-1040 (7AM-7 PM local time) Monday-Friday

When calling the IRS do not choose the first choice re: "Refund", or it will send you to an automated phone line.

• First choose your language.  Then listen to each menu before making the selection.
• Then press 2 for "personal income tax".
• Then press 1 for "form, tax history, or payment".  
• Then press 3 "for all other questions."
• Then press 2 "for all other questions." 
• It may then ask for your SSN, but do not enter it.  Just wait.    If it asks for SSN a second time, still do not enter it.
• Then it will get "tired", and you'll get another menu.  Choose 2 for "personal".
• Then in the next menu choose 4 for "all other inquiries", and it should transfer you to an agent but expect a long wait.

[Jessforgets]

No this is for this year. Or 2021. I was accepted on the 21srt. IRS had no record, but TurboTax says different. 

[CarissaM]

@Jessforgets Accepted means they have taken ownership of the return, but have yet to process the return. When they accept it, they verify the social security number matches the tax payer on the return. They will not have a record of the return until it has been processed. 

[Jessforgets]

Ok. So basically being " accepted" means absolutely nothing? I have never had this issue before. If I was "accepted" it shows on the IRS website. Several other people in my tax group were "accepted" on the same day as I was and already have a refund deposit date. That is why I'm questioning this. It seems my return was lost. From the looks of the forum this issue happens quite often. 

[Critter-3]

Accepted for processing is just the first step ... the return will be in processing until the IRS approves the release of the refund.  I wish the IRS site WMR? tool had more to offer but it doesn't.   And returns are not processed first come first serve any longer ... your return can be delayed in processing for any reason for any amount of time they deem necessary.    https://www.irs.gov/refunds

From the IRS:  

How quickly will I get my refund?

We issue most refunds in less than 21 calendar days.

It is taking the IRS more than 21 days to issue refunds for some 2020 tax returns that require review including incorrect Recovery Rebate Credit amounts, or that used 2019 income to figure the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC).

I’m counting on my refund for something important. Can I expect to receive it in 21 days?

Many different factors can affect the timing of your refund after we receive your return. Even though we issue most refunds in less than 21 days, it’s possible your refund may take longer. Also, remember to take into consideration the time it takes for your financial institution to post the refund to your account or for you to receive it by mail.

It's been longer than 21 days since the IRS received my return and I haven’t gotten my refund. Why?

Some tax returns take longer to process than others for many reasons, including when a return:

• Includes errors, such as incorrect Recovery Rebate Credit
• Is incomplete
• Needs further review in general
• Is affected by identity theft or fraud
• Includes a claim filed for an Earned Income Tax Credit or an Additional Child Tax Credit. See Q&A below.
• Includes a Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation PDF, which could take up to 14 weeks to process

For the latest information on IRS refund processing during the COVID-19 pandemic, see the IRS Operations Status page.

We will contact you by mail when (or if) we need more information to process your return. If we’re still processing your return or correcting an error, neither Where’s My Refund? or our phone representatives will be able to provide you with your specific refund date. Please check Where’s My Refund? for updated information on your refund.

I claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) on my tax return. When can I expect my refund?

According to the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act, the IRS cannot issue EITC and ACTC refunds before mid-February. The IRS expects most EITC/ACTC related refunds to be available in taxpayer bank accounts or on debit cards by the first week of March, if they chose direct deposit and there are no other issues with their tax return. Check Where’s My Refund for your personalized refund date.

Where’s My Refund? on IRS.gov and the IRS2Go mobile app remains the best way to check the status of a refund. WMR on IRS.gov and the IRS2Go app will be updated with projected deposit dates for most early EITC/ACTC refund filers by February 22. So EITC/ACTC filers will not see an update to their refund status for several days after Feb. 15. 

[Jessforgets]

The problem is, I do not have that bar. It does not say processing. It says there is no record of the return. They never received my return. No record. 

[RobertB4444]

@Jessforgets If the IRS has flagged your return for extra processing for any reason then it will show as "accepted" and then nothing else while it gets processed.  

You need to contact the IRS if you want to get any more information on your currently processing return.  Calling the IRS is hard work and is not recommended in your position.  

If you feel that you must contact the IRS just be aware that they are heavily understaffed and backlogged.  They’re not easy to get a hold of.  Call first thing in the morning and prepare to be on hold for a long time.  This is the link to use to get ahold of them.

[dylanglockler]

A follow up on my case: After more than six months of occasionally spending an hour or two on the phone trying to reach someone a friend casually asked why i didn't just go down there and see someone in person, as if it were that easy. So I called the number to make an appointment, another hour of sifting through dead menus, I was shocked when i heard a real human voice. The gentleman told me he couldn't make an appointment, that I had to call the same number I had been, and hope to get through. Then he paused and said, Ok I'll take a look this one time. For the next two hours he put on hold countless times until he was able to find that there was a fraud hold on my 2019 taxes because I had submitted a paper copy with COPY written on every page and a letter addressing that it had been well over a year with no information. So they simply put a fraud hold on it and sent a letter, which was never received.Fortunately he was able to clear the 2019 and inform me that 2020 was still in the queue, but would take a while because I had to file that return on paper due to 2019 being on hold. My 2019 refund would be in the mail (too late for a direct deposit) and I can use a 0 AGI to submit my 2021 electronic return. 

Feels like a win.

[Jessforgets]

Thank you for the follow up. I'm very glad that it all worked out in the end. I'm going to give my situation the 21 days it says to wait and if my status has not changed by then, I will be in the phone with them. 

[chloe3827]

Hello everyone! 

It sounds like I am in the same boat too.  I filed my 2020 taxes through TurboTax back in May of 2021 and still have not received my refund.  

Up until January of this year, when I checked online, it would just say, 'pending'.

Now, when I use the IRS "where is my refund" app, it says it cannot find it!  

And good luck on trying to get a hold of someone at the IRS.  Been trying since January and going through their mountain of menus only to be told to 'call back later'.

[xmasbaby0]

@chloe3827 

TurboTax does not get any information at all from the IRS after you file your tax return.  No one at TurboTax knows what the IRS is doing with your return.

The IRS refund site is not showing information now for 2020 refunds.  It is only showing 2021 refund information, so if you try to track a 2020 refund it will tell you there is no information.

There have been a lot of delays for 2020  federal refunds.  Did you mail your return or e-file?

If you mailed it:

MAILED RETURNS

If  you mail a tax return (or a payment) to the IRS, it is a good idea to use a mailing service that will track it like UPS or certified mail so you will know it was received.

When you mail a tax return, you need to attach any documents showing tax withheld, such as your W-2’s or any 1099’s. 

TurboTax will not know anything about your mailed return, and will continue to show “Ready to Mail” on your account.  TurboTax will not know that you put your tax return in an envelope and took it to a mailbox.  TurboTax does not get updates on mailed  (or e-filed) returns.

The IRS refund site is only showing information about 2021 refunds now so it will not show anything about your 2020 refund.

Or......

Did you e-file?  Did you click a big orange button that said “Transmit my returns now?”

When you e-file your federal return you will receive two emails from TurboTax.  The first one will say that your return was submitted.  The second email will tell you if your federal return was accepted or rejected.  If you e-filed a state return, there will be a third email to tell you if the state accepted or rejected your state return.

Does your TT account say that your return was accepted?  Or does it say something else—like “rejected”, “printed” or “ready to mail?”  If it does not say accepted then it was not filed unless you put it in an envelope yourself and mailed it.

 TurboTax does not mail your tax return for you.

If your e-file was accepted:

If you chose to have your fees deducted from your federal refund:

Santa Barbara Tax Products Group, LLC  (SBTPG) is the bank that handles the Refund Processing Service when you choose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your refund. This option also has an additional charge from the bank that processes the transaction. 

You can contact them SBTPG, toll-free, at 1-877-908-7228 or go to their secure website www.sbtpg.com 

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2580357-who-provides-the-refund-processing-service

To call the IRS:IRS:  800-829-1040  hours 7 AM - 7 PM local time Mon-Fri

Listen to each menu before making the selection.

First choose your language. Press 1 for English.

Then do NOT choose the first choice re: "Refund", or it will send you to an automated phone line.

Instead, press 2 for "personal income tax".

Then press 1 for "form, tax history, or payment".  

Then press 3 "for all other questions."

Then press 2 "for all other questions."  It should then transfer you to an agent.

TAX ADVOCATE

At the following IRS website, find the USA map and click on your state, and it will give you the number of your area's IRS Taxpayer Advocate.

http://www.irs.gov/uac/Contact-a-Local-Taxpayer-Advocate

Also see this article for more info on how the Taxpayer Advocate Service works::
http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc104.html

[LenaH]

Please see Why is there no record of my return at Where's My Refund (WMR)? for reasons why the WMR tool may have no record of your tax return. 

@chloe3827

[chloe3827]

Thank you for your reply!

To answer a few of your questions:

1.  I did e-file it with Turbo Tax

2.  I did transmit the return AND received both emails.  Second one did state that the IRS accepted my return.

Unfortunately, almost a year later and nothing.  Just 'pending' until December and now IRS website doesn't even show it.  No luck with getting a live person at the IRS either,  I go through all the menus only to be told to call back at another time.

[chloe3827]

Thank you for your reply!

But 9 months (and counting) is a LONG time for a tax return to just be in 'pending' status. 

And it sounds like my only course of action is to try to call the IRS, which unfortunately has been very unsuccessful, as there are no live agents to talk to ( I just keep getting told to call back later).