Cannot get status of deceased mother's 2022 Virginia state tax return

[Sue60]

I prepared my deceased mother's 2022 tax returns (Fed and Virginia) using TurboTax and e-filed both on 2/23/2023.   Both returns were accepted.  Fed paid refund via direct deposit 8 days later; Virginia state return shows no new status.  When I called the Virginia Department of Taxation for a status update, they told me they could not talk to me about my deceased mother's tax return status because I was not on the account.  They told me I needed to submit a Form 1310 (I did -- it was included in the e-file).  I asked them what I needed to do so that they would talk to me about status, and they kept referring me to Form 1310.  So, I faxed a physically signed copy of Form 1310 along with my mother's death certificate.  They told me it would take 6 weeks to process.  All this just so (I assume) someone can provide me with a status update on the refund.  I'm feeling that the Form 1310 that TurboTax e-filed either didn't get to the Virginia Department of Taxation or was somehow deficient in whatever Virginia needs.  Any idea why Virginia is holding up the refund while the IRS processed without delay?  How can I get out of this endless loop of guessing what Virginia needs from me when they say they can't discuss with me?  

[Anonymous_ · Accepted solution]

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@Sue60 wrote:

I'm feeling that the Form 1310 that TurboTax e-filed either didn't get to the Virginia Department of Taxation....

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You are most likely correct; the e-filed 1310 probably only made it to the IRS via TurboTax and not the Virginia Department of Taxation.

See https://www.tax.virginia.gov/deceased-individuals

[MonikaK1]

Virginia has an online tool and a phone tool for checking the status of a refund. Please see this webpage for more information. 

Please see this Virginia webpage for information on tax filing issues for deceased individuals and this Virginia webpage for information on contacting the Virginia Taxpayer Advocate via mail or fax. The state website also indicates that they are taking additional fraud prevention steps this year that may cause delays in issuing refunds.

I am sorry for your loss.

[Sue60]

Thank you for your thoughtful response.  I'm aware of the online status checking site -- that's how I know that the return status hasn't changed from "accepted" since 2/23/2023.    

I also wondered if this was just some aggressive fraud prevention process that have implemented.  However, in that case, I would have thought they would have sent a Refund Verification Letter or otherwise communicated why they weren't processing the return.  Of course, if they think they haven't received a Form 1310, then they wouldn't have a name/address to contact, I guess.

Starting to look like e-filing a State return for a deceased taxpayer is not the right thing to do....

[Anonymous_]

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@Sue60 wrote:

Starting to look like e-filing a State return for a deceased taxpayer is not the right thing to do....

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I agree and some states actually either do not allow e-filing for a deceased taxpayer or have their own version of federal Form 1310 (like Illinois' IL-1310).

[Sue60]

Thanks for your quick reply.  However, TurboTax sure made it look like it was e-filing the Form 1310 as part of the Virginia tax return.   And, frankly, that is what I would have expected TT to do.  Oh, well, lesson learned:  don't e-file a State tax return for a deceased taxpayer.