Long Wait for 2023 Alabama Tax Refund

[scotsman2]

I filed my Alabama Individual Income Tax Return electronically on February 27.  The return was accepted, but as of today, July 15, I have not received my refund.  There is no way I can obtain any feedback as to why it is taking so long and whether something was wrong with my return. When I use the "Where's my refund" tool I am simply told that the return is being processed. Usually, if there were a problem I would receive a letter from the Alabama Department of Revenue. A month ago I called a number for tax refund inquiries only, and was only told that it was being processed and no other information was available. 

I wonder if any of my fellow Alabamians have encountered this situation. If others are finding themselves in the same circumstances, then my case may not be that unusual.

[xmasbaby0]

Federal and state refunds come from completely separate entities,  There is no rule as to which one will come first or how much time there will be between their arrivals.  Some states process returns quickly and some are very slow.

STATE RETURN

Make sure your state return was accepted:  https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/efile-status-lookup/

To track your state refund:    

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1899433-how-do-i-track-my-state-refund

https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/state-taxes/help/how-do-i-contact-my-state-department-of-revenue/0...

[scotsman2]

I was simply wondering if others had found themselves in the "same boat" that I am in, regarding delayed refunds.  I have also done all of the above, and am no neophyte when it comes to dealing with MyAlabamaTaxes online.  The "Where's My Refund" online tool provides no useful feedback, and I have not received a letter from AL Dept. of Revenue indicating problems with my return, that was accepted on 27 February. There was no delay at all last year, but then I input my tax data directly into the website. I guess the only thing to do, at least for Tax Year  2023, is to wait. For 2024 I will simply opt to have my overpayment credited to next year's taxes, and this should fix the problem. I am retired and no longer have funds withheld from state taxes.

[xmasbaby0]

@scotsman2 Could you explain this---

"Since I am retired and have no state withholding, for 2024 I will simply opt to have my overpayment credited to next year's taxes."

If you had no state withholding, then what refund were you expecting to get from the state?  Does your 2023 state tax return form show a refund?    What "overpayment" are you referring to?

[scotsman2]

To cover State taxes I usually mail in my estimated State taxes early in the Calendar Year which so far has been more than enough to cover my annual tax bill. I am a retired Federal employee, and Alabama permits taxpayers to deduct Federal income taxes.  Alabama does not tax Federal and Social Security annuities so my taxable  income is substantially reduced on my State return. Only my IRA and interest/dividend income are taxed  For 2023 my Federal tax bill was high, due to the effects of higher interest rates. I had to pay the US Treasury more than anticipated. This increased my Federal taxes and reduced my State taxes. I credited most of my State overpayment to 2024 taxes, and will receive a refund for less than $100 from the State.

[Mike9241]

For 2024 I will simply opt to have my overpayment credited to next year's taxes, and this should fix the problem. 

If there is the same issue with 2024, the overpayment may not be credited to 2025 until such time as AL completes processing of the return. This should not present a problem for 2025 unless there is an usually long delay in fully processing 2024.

If i were you I would call at least monthly to find out if progress has been made.

[scotsman2]

I called on August 9th and was told to expect a refund in about two weeks. This was after nearly five and a half months of waiting. So it looks like a manpower and workload issue; simply overwhelmed with more than two million returns with not enough manpower to process them by the "traditional" deadlines.