All Posts

So this is why I am confused….I had the windfall lump sum payment. When I transfer line 6a from last year’s taxes to this year’s spreadsheet, Turbotax tells me that it is too much $$$s and brings it up as an error. The amount in the 2024 line 6a is a total of my and my husband’s SSA plus CPP and OAS from Canada. 

TurboTax gives you an estimated date for receiving your refund based on a 21 day average from your date of acceptance, but it can take longer.  “21 days”  is not a promise from TurboTax or the IRS.      First, check your e-file status to see if your return was accepted:  https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/efile-status-lookup/   Once your federal return has been accepted by the IRS, only the IRS has any control.  TurboTax does not receive any updates from the IRS. Your ONLY source of information about your refund now is the IRS.     You need your filing status, your Social Security number and the exact amount  (line 35a of your 2025 Form 1040) of your federal refund to track your Federal refund:    https://www.irs.gov/refunds   To track your state refund:     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/track-state-refund/L3jgO8PGs_US_en_US?uid=lt447ebr   If you chose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your federal refund, that will take some extra time, while the third party bank handles the refund processing     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/refunds-take-longer-others/L14YlqFrH_US_en_US?uid=lexdr7zh . https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/irs-refund-taking-longer-21-days/L2vRAJbdU_US_en_US?uid=lexe7lst         If you are getting earned income credit on line 27 or additional child tax credit on line 28 You are subject to the delay required by the PATH act.  Do not expect your refund before early March   https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/internal-revenue-service/federal-refunds-delayed-due-path-act/L5jnQJsBi_US_en_US   Note:  “Accepted” is not the same as “approved”.  TurboTax tells you the e-file was accepted if the IRS deems that there is enough information on the return for them to take it in for processing.   Only the IRS can approve of the refund, which is a later stage of processing.  If the IRS approves your refund they will provide a date for the refund to be issued.   FROM THE IRS WHERE’S MY REFUND SITE: https://www.irs.gov/wheres-my-refund How it works Where's My Refund shows your refund status: Return Received – We received your return and are processing it. Refund Approved – We approved your refund and are preparing to issue it by the date shown. Refund Sent – We sent the refund to your bank or to you in the mail. It may take 5 days for it to show in your bank account or several weeks for your check to arrive in the mail.  

Thank you for replying! It is a weird scheme, I think it is so that the entire 25-26 school year is contained within the 2026 tax year for their bookkeeping. Their resources say that the fall 2025 tuition they pay counts towards my 2026 $5,250 tax-free limit because they record it in 2026, are you saying that is incorrect and it counts towards the 2025 limit because they reimbursed my account with the school in 2025?  Since the amount I actually paid in 2025 tuition was $0, and the amount reimbursed was below the tax-free limit, I don't think it makes sense for me to claim the AOTC for this year anyways because I would only be credited the ~$200 I spent on books in 2025. It does look like they're going to tax me on the tuition benefit paid to the school in 2025 as if it was paid to me in 2026, so unless it would be unwise, I will probably ignore the 1098-T from 2025 altogether and then next year report the taxable tuition benefit amount as it is recorded on my paychecks in 2026. I'm not sure how I would go about reconciling their reporting of it as income on my W-2 otherwise, since that does get reported to the IRS.

TurboTax gives you an estimated date for receiving your refund based on a 21 day average from your date of acceptance, but it can take longer.  “21 days”  is not a promise from TurboTax or the IRS.      First, check your e-file status to see if your return was accepted:  https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/efile-status-lookup/   Once your federal return has been accepted by the IRS, only the IRS has any control.  TurboTax does not receive any updates from the IRS. Your ONLY source of information about your refund now is the IRS.     You need your filing status, your Social Security number and the exact amount  (line 35a of your 2025 Form 1040) of your federal refund to track your Federal refund:    https://www.irs.gov/refunds   To track your state refund:     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/track-state-refund/L3jgO8PGs_US_en_US?uid=lt447ebr   If you chose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your federal refund, that will take some extra time, while the third party bank handles the refund processing     https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/refunds-take-longer-others/L14YlqFrH_US_en_US?uid=lexdr7zh . https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-refund/irs-refund-taking-longer-21-days/L2vRAJbdU_US_en_US?uid=lexe7lst         If you are getting earned income credit on line 27 or additional child tax credit on line 28 You are subject to the delay required by the PATH act.  Do not expect your refund before early March   https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/internal-revenue-service/federal-refunds-delayed-due-path-act/L5jnQJsBi_US_en_US   Note:  “Accepted” is not the same as “approved”.  TurboTax tells you the e-file was accepted if the IRS deems that there is enough information on the return for them to take it in for processing.   Only the IRS can approve of the refund, which is a later stage of processing.  If the IRS approves your refund they will provide a date for the refund to be issued.   FROM THE IRS WHERE’S MY REFUND SITE: https://www.irs.gov/wheres-my-refund How it works Where's My Refund shows your refund status: Return Received – We received your return and are processing it. Refund Approved – We approved your refund and are preparing to issue it by the date shown. Refund Sent – We sent the refund to your bank or to you in the mail. It may take 5 days for it to show in your bank account or several weeks for your check to arrive in the mail.  

Are you trying to claim an  adult family member as a dependent?  They might be a qualifying relative, for whom you get a non-refundable $500 credit for other dependents.   Qualifying relative They don't have to be related to you (despite the name). They aren't claimed as a dependent by someone else. They're a U.S. citizen, resident alien, national, or a Canadian or Mexican resident. They aren’t filing a joint return with their spouse. They lived with you the entire year (exceptions apply). They made less than $5050 in 2024.   ($5200 for 2025) (Not counting Social Security) You provided more than half of their financial support.   When you add someone as a dependent, we'll ask a series of questions to make sure you can claim them. There may be other tax benefits you can get when you claim a dependent. Related Information: What does "financially support another person" mean?     IRS interview to help determine who can be claimed: https://www.irs.gov/help/ita/who-can-i-claim-as-a-dependent       If you can claim them as a dependent then you can also enter out of pocket medical expenses that you pay for on their behalf if you are itemizing deductions.   MEDICAL EXPENSES The medical expense deduction has to meet a rather large threshold before it can affect your return. The amount of medical (including dental, vision, etc.)  expenses that will count toward itemization is the amount that is OVER 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. You should only enter the amount that you paid in 2025—do not include any amounts that were covered by insurance or that are still outstanding.  Of course, your medical expenses plus your other itemized deductions still have to exceed your standard deduction before you will see a difference in your tax due or refund.   To enter your medical expenses go to Federal>Deductions and Credits>Medical>Medical Expenses       2025 STANDARD DEDUCTION AMOUNTS SINGLE $15,750  (65 or older/legally blind + $2000) MARRIED FILING SEPARATELY $15,750  (65 or older/legally blind +1600) MARRIED FILING JOINTLY $31,500  (65 or older/legally blind + $1600) HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD $23,625 (65 or older/legally blind + $2000)      

The $40 refund processing fee is the fee that is charged by a third party bank if you choose to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your federal refund instead of paying upfront with your own credit or debit card before you e-file.   You are not required to use refund processing; in fact, many of us discourage it.   If your refund is enough to cover your TurboTax fees PLUS the extra “refund processing” fee of $40 ($45 in CA) and your forms are ready then when you are in the FILE section you can choose to have your fees deducted from your federal refund by a third party bank, who will take out your fees and send you the rest of your refund after the IRS issues the refund.    Please make note that if your refund takes too long to arrive (IRS delays, etc.) then you will also be agreeing that the TurboTax fees can be extracted from your bank account even before your refund is issued by the IRS.  This comes as an unpleasant shock to many people every year.      If you can possibly pay your fees upfront using a debit or credit card, it will save you that extra fee and even more importantly, the possible aggravation and delays that are often the result of poor handling/poor customer service by that third party bank.  We see way too many instances where refunds are delayed for months when users choose refund processing. There have been lots of complaints; there are a number of things that can go wrong when you use refund processing.  I suggest avoiding that situation if at all possible.     And....you can never pay state tax due from a federal refund, so do not expect that.   The state tax due has to be paid directly to your state.     What is Refund Processing Service?     How can I see my TurboTax  fees?      https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/intuit-account-billing/review-fees-turbotax-online/L1XnIzgzg_US_en_US?uid=m682vq7k     REMOVE REFUND PROCESSING FEE   https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/intuit-account-billing/remove-pay-refund-fees-turbotax-online-change/L7UxC6ZZp_US_en_US?uid=m6r4xelq