Last year you got a big refund because you had tax withheld from your unemployment benefits. You didn't have to pay that much tax - maybe you didn't have to pay any tax at all - so you got back most or all of the tax that was withheld. This year you didn't have any tax withheld, so there is nothing to be refunded.
@cheyenne112198 wrote:
If I pay quarterly taxes this year on my self employed income will that help with actually getting a refund next year?
Sure you can to that. But you're just handing over your own money to the government. They hold your money all year and send it back to you when you file your tax return at the end of the year. And they don't pay you any interest on it. If you do what Critter-3 suggested and put your money in a savings account instead of sending it to the government, at least you'll earn a small amount of interest on it.
