California late filings and missing return

[mmbowm]

I helped a friend get caught up on taxes with paper returns for California for the years 2019, 2020, and 2021.  These were all mailed April 2022.  He owed $657 for 2019 which he paid by check with that return.  He was due a refund of $1,583 for 2020 and a refund of $1,823 for 2021.   To date, he has only received one direct deposit in the amount of $1,366.48.   

He has been unable to set up a FTB account and his work schedule precludes him from sitting on hold to research/discuss this any further with the Franchise tax board so we are a bit in the dark here.  

I believe the deposit was for his 2020 return after deductions for penalty and interest.   Is this a correct assumption, and if so, should we just remail a copy of the 2021 return.  

I appreciate any and all help on this.  Thanks.

[MonikaK1]

California offers several options to check on the status of a refund.

To check the status of your California state refund online, go to

https://webapp.ftb.ca.gov/refund/login. 

The user will be prompted to enter:

• Social Security number
• Numbers from your address (if you have numbers in your address)
• Zip code
• Your exact refund amount

You can check on refund status by phone: 1-800-338-0505 or +1 (916) 845-6500 (outside the U.S.) Weekdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

You can check on refund status by chat. Sign into MyFTB to chat weekdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. The user will be prompted to create an account in order to use this function.

You may send a letter asking for a status of your refund:

Franchise Tax Board

PO Box 942840

Sacramento CA 942840-0040

Please see this webpage for more information.

Taxpayers should generally utilize these resources rather than mail additional copies of the return unless there is good reason to believe the original wasn't delivered.