Request for federal refund again? I filled in Feb 2020 and did not get my tax return for 2019 at all

[llinfeng]

I just finished preparing for my 2020 return, but found my 2019 federal tax returns should still be missing :( I mailed both the request for state refund and federal refund on the same date, and only the state refund arrived through direct deposit.

Per a post on this forum, calling IRS at [phone number removed] is a long shot.

Is there a mechanism to submit for tax return afresh, for the "missing" 2019 tax return? I keyed in my SSN and the return amount to the ISR website, and it said it cannot find my filing. I was filing by mail through USPS First Class mail. The tracking number said it was received in March 2020.

[VolvoGirl]

Did you mail federal to the IRS Treasury Dept separate from your state return?  They go to different places.  Some people have been mailing both federal and state in the same envelope.  The IRS is probably still behind processing mailed returns for 2019.  Call the IRS and ask.  If they didn't get 2019 you will have to mail it again.  

And when you file 2020, if the AGI rejects, try using 0 for the AGI since they haven't processed 2019 yet.  

[SweetieJean]

You are not alone.  The IRS still has several million of these left to process from the COVID shutdown. Per the IRS, do not file a second return. See:

Haven't Received Your 2019 Tax Refund Yet? You're Not Alone (msn.com)

Refunds | Internal Revenue Service (irs.gov)

Note:  While the IRS says it is processing paper returns First In First Out, the same is not true for efiled ones.

[llinfeng]

I did use a separate envelope for the federal tax return forms. I mailed it to the following address according to what turbotax told me.

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service
Fresno, CA [social security number removed]

I was claiming the US-China tax treaty as a student, following the instruction from this post. Should tax returns filed with Miscellaneous Income, 1099-A go somewhere else?

Also, to follow up on contacting IRS: similar to what others are reporting in this post, it is extremely difficult to talk to someone through [phone number removed]. Can I figure out whether IRS has received the mail (delivered in February 2020) by calling a local IRS branch? At minimum, there are a lot more numbers to try 🙂

[llinfeng]

I was first impressed by how fast the initial replies came in, and now a bit disappointed that there is little follow-up.

Here is what I decided to do: file the 2020 tax return as normal and stop trying to call the IRS to figure out what was happening to the 2019 federal return. Waiting for another year or two may help lol.

----

Here is the rationale: there is no clear sign that my 2019 tax return was processed at all. The USPS tracking label said the parcel was delivered on Feb 28 2020. On the online-tracking-tool, though, I cannot track the federal tax return at all. The system said "no matching record", which I guess means my filing is sitting in a pile of unprocessed materials?

Also, the more I look into to the "business of contacting IRS", the more I feel like I am better off to simply wait for another year or, say, another two years? I tried a couple of days earlier this week to call the IRS number, and I cannot even get through for a single time. This is too much an effort for me.

[CarissaM · Accepted solution]

The IRS has a big backlog of returns they still need to process for 2019. Unfortunately the IRS is the only one who can track a return that was sent in by mail. 

They can track if you call them by phone, even if not processed they will have it scanned into the building. 

[aairandyii]

I received no refund for 2019 or 2020. I am afraid to again use Turbo Tax to do 2021.  May 13 2021 I paid extra $128 to have Live MAX talk me through reason for rejection of 2019.   It still has not been processed for passed two years.    Is it smart for me to try Turbo Tax again??

[ChondelLO]

@aairandyii Please contact the IRS or a Taxpayer Advocate since it has been two years. Also, please take advantage of your MAX benefits by visiting the Help Article below for instructions on how to access them.

How do I access my MAX benefits? - Intuit

[llinfeng]

I followed the advice and did not redo the 2019 tax. And, the advice to contact IRS worked in my case. Though, it took quite some effort to get the call through. (Tips: just keep calling.)