As a minor filing this year I am getting a tax refund about half of what I had last year. Am I missing something?

[AmyC]

As a minor, you don't qualify for any credits and would be getting a return of the taxes you had withheld. Take a look at your tax withheld this year compared to last year. The more you have withheld, the bigger your refund and less spending money in your pocket.

[xmasbaby0]

 We cannot see your 2023 return or your 2024 return.  There are a lot of variables that go into the calculations for a tax refund.   First----compare the amounts in box 2 of your 2023 W-2 and box 2 of your 2024 W-2.   Then compare those same W-2's and look at box 17 on each one.  How about box 1 on each W-2?   Did you earn more or earn less in 2023?  Did you have more tax withheld in 2023 or more withheld in 2024?

Print out your 2023 and 2024 tax returns and lay them next to each other.  Compare them line by line to see what is different.

And....of course----check all of your data entries and look for typos, missed decimals or misplaced decimals, and extra zeros.