IRS sent CP11 Form due to 8812 error

[limclaughlin7]

I completed my taxes using desktop TurboTax.  Our joint income is <$150,000.  We have 2 kids aged 12 and 17.  I received $1,500 prepayment of child tax credit (hubby received $0).  I answered every Turbotax question correctly, but now IRS sent a CP11 form stating I owe $1,300 due to 8812 error.

If I owe it, fine... but what's going on? How is this such a big miss?? Faith in TurboTax is plummeting... guidance is appreciated!

[NCperson]

did you check you bank statements from July - Dec, 2021?  (don't go from memory)

the norm would have been for the IRS to have sent $500 per month for 6 months.  it would be unusual for you to receive $250 per month and him to receive zero...... 

[Critter-3]

TT guarantees accuracy as long as you enter the information correctly..... in other words, they are guaranteeing their software is correct, but they are not guaranteeing you enter everything correctly. 

Most of these changes relate to either the Recovery Rebate or the Advance Child Tax Credit.  In both cases, you were required to enter the amounts already received. 

Please look at Line 30 of Form 1040.... did you receive the 3rd Stimulus back in March - May, 2021 timeframe. If yes, then this amount should really be zero (in most cases).  

Please look at Line 28 of Form 1040....did you receive advances for your children back in July - Dec, 2021? Then this line should be $3600 for each child under the age of 6 plus $3000 for each child ages 6-17 LESS what you received in July-  Dec. 2021

Do either of these situation above fit you?

The IRS sends the letter of explanation 2-4 weeks after the refund / payment requires occurs.  

[Critter-3]

If you got a 6419 letter  from the IRS for 1/2 of the CTC advance AND you file a joint 2020 return  then both of you should have gotten a 6419 letter showing 1/2 of the CTC advance and even if you both did not get a 6419 you still had to enter all the advance payments you got combined.  Funny that many married couples did not get both letters in the mail ... who knows what happened to them. 

[limclaughlin7]

OK, thanks for that... digging through bank statements, I did find that missing $1,500, but never got a 6419 for hubby...  Ugh. this is a user error. Can I delete this post? Sorry for the time waste. 

[NCperson]

@Critter-3 - my bet is they did get both letters, but since both letters were exactly the same (except for the addressee), whichever spouse filled out the tax return didn't realize a) to add the two letters together, b) one spouse didn't tell the other spouse about the letter received.

[NCperson]

@limclaughlin7 - welcome to the club.....there are many "user errors" on this issue...... you are not alone 😉

[limclaughlin7]

I can understand your assumption that 1 spouse would hide the money... but that didn't happen here.  We flat out didn't get that notice. We only received one 6419 letter. I had to dig back in MY account (not his) to find the deposits. Anyway, thanks for the help! Sending the missing $1300 off to IRS now. 

[NCperson]

I wasn't suggesting that one spouse would hide the money, but if your not used to these tax requirements, I could see that two letters show up and they are EXACTLY the same, other than who they are addressed to (one to each spouse), that some couples might assume they are duplicates and / or since one spouse normally does the taxes, the other spouse didn't realize the importance of that letter.  

What is more important than the letter, is what you actually received in your bank account - THAT is really where the confusion occured. 

in 2022, there doesn't appear there will be an advance on the child tax credit, not will there be a stimulus, so this should all be a lot easier.