Fed refund shorted;CO returned spouses 2023 estimated tax payments

[artp]

Client got married in 2023 and filed joint return with new spouse. Fed refunded shorted by $25---processing fee?? Spouse made quarterly payments electronically under her SSN. All payments cleared the bank for the amount submitted. IRS transcript matched the return as filed showing refund $969 but only $944 was directly deposited in their bank. No correspondence from IRS. No outstanding balances on prior years accounts.  What gives??

Spouses CO estimated payments also sent electronically under her SSN was refunded to her by check with cover letter stating "the direct deposit refund was converted to the enclosed paper check per our fraud prevention measurers". However, the refund requested per the return was $2295 and the refund check was only $407, the amount of the estimated tax payments. Assume the balance of the refund will eventually get direct deposited??

Have not seen the issues before.  Any other ideas?

[Lee B]

Perhaps Perplexity.ai can answer your question

[Lee B]

24 minutes ago, Lee B said:

Perhaps Perplexity.ai can answer your question

I made this post "tongue in cheek"

However, I do think that in a few more years, many preparers will be using generative ai to answer their tax questions.

That will be sad because the participation on this board may drop significantly

[BrewOne]

When refunds do not match calculated amounts, correspondence will follow.  Unfortunately for us, the money arrives before the explanation.

[mcbreck]

Call the IRS and ask them.

 

I've had some weird letters come in from the IRS this year. One the IRS requested the client go to an IRS office and verify who they are before they issue a refund. Before the letter was received the refund had been deposited into their account.

 

Another client received a letter that their overpayment couldn't be applied to 2024 but no check and no reason why. When I called the IRS they laughed and said it was applied forward.

[Catherine]

1 hour ago, BrewOne said:

When refunds do not match calculated amounts, correspondence will follow.  Unfortunately for us, the money arrives before the explanation.

Not always! I've had a few over the years where no letter ever followed to explain discrepancies. The states tend to be worse about that than the IRS, but the IRS does it too. I'd call. Next week.

[mcb39]

Calling is next to impossible and useless.  My clients are also receiving weird letters with no explaination; just a Balance Due.  For what, we say?  The IRS is a mess.  As for WI, not the case.  I had a client receive 7 letters from them last Friday, all about the same subject, but in different format.  Overkill in the other direction.

[Lee B]

Now that that they have restarted sending notices, the current notices just show a balance due,

so we and our clients never see the suspended notices that were never mailed.

If a client signs up for an online account, can they see a history of all of the notices?

 

[Lee B]

28 minutes ago, Lee B said:

If a client signs up for an online account, can they see a history of all of the notices?

28 minutes ago, Lee B said:

 

I decided to answer my own question

A Tax Return Transcript just shows the original line items without any subsequent changes.

A Record of Account Transcript shows the tax return line items plus all of the subsequent changes.

I get the impression that there's no history of all of the notices?