Claims for Refund – Wait a minute the IRS owes ME money! How do I get it back?
If you believe that you have over paid your taxes, you have a different kind of IRS Problem. It is possible to get money back from the IRS if you follow the correct procedure and have patience.
Timeframe
Claims for refund need to be filed within 3 years from the date the original tax return was filed or 2 years from when you paid the tax, whichever date is later. If you file your return early, the date will be from the date the return was actually due. If you fail to file a claim for refund within this timeframe, you will probably lose the opportunity to receive a refund.
Steps to Filing a Claim for Refund
Fill out Form 1040X (Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return).
Use a separate form for each year you want to amend.
Determine whether you need to change your state return also.
Include the explanation of income, deduction, or credit you base your claim on.
Attach a copy of the original return and all attachments.
Send via certified mail. If you have multiple claims, send each one separately.
Wait. It could take 2-3 months for the claim to be processed.
IRS Procedure
The IRS will either deny your claim, accept it as filed, or examine your claim. If it chooses to examine your claim, it will follow pretty much the same procedure as when it examined your original tax return.
It should be noted that if you file for a refund for more than the allowable amount, a penalty of 20% of the excessive amount might be assessed.
The IRS can deny your claim for a number of reasons:
You filed the claim too late.
Your claim was based on the unconstitutionality of the revenue acts
You reached a settlement with the IRS so the claim is waived.
You claim a year that is now part of a closing agreement or an offer in compromise.
Your return was closed by a final court order.
The IRS must send you an explanation of why your claim was denied for any of these or other reasons. You will have 2 years from the date of this mailing to file a refund suit.
There are also special circumstances that can affect a claim for refund such as disaster area claims, claim for refunds by estates, and injured spouse exception.
With its many complexities, a claim for refund can be more than you can handle alone. Contact our office for assistance. Your IRS Problems can be easily solved. Call us today tollfree at (888) 438-6474. We represent taxpayers in all 50 states.
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Comments on Claims for Refund – Wait a minute the IRS owes ME money! How do I get it back?
A year ago the IRS sent me a letter saying they needed a Scedule D from me because I had not reported the cost basis of a mutual fund and I had not reported the gain or loss of the mutual fund. I had to pay more taxes and interest and penalties. The stock broker does not report the cost basis of their mutual funds to the IRS. Why didn't the IRS want documentary evidence from me to prove the accuuracy of the Schedule D I sent them? They said I could still amend the return after the new adjustments. Is it possible to get a refund by simply sending them a new Schedule D or would they want more documentation?
You might be able to obtain a refund for any overpayment as long as you make your claim within two years of the overpayment. You generally only have 3 years from the due date of the return to file an amended return. If the IRS doesn't request documentation you do not have to provide it. They often won't ask for documentation if it seems like you simply omitted the Schedule. Only in an IRS audit will they normally ask for documentation.
I recently was awarded equitable relief under 6015f through federal tax court. This process took over 2 years before my case was heard due to technical jurisdiction issues. My home was sold in the mean time and the equity went straight to the IRS to satisfy back taxes, since I was relieved of this tax debt and divorce states that if so, I am to recieve 1/2 of the equity in the home. My ex did an offer in compromise and offered the full equity in the home to the IRS as settlement, but half was mine! Now who do I go after to get my money,the ex by filing contempt charges??? or the IRS whom took it??
Angela,
Tough call but I would suggest that your best remedy is against the ex in state court using the Court's contempt powers. The state court judge should be able to incarcerate him for contempt while the IRS definitely cannot and will not. Good luck.
Thank you. I wasnt sure how to proceed. I appreciate your time and answer. Sincerely, Angela
When sending in our 2007 1040, i failed to attach a 1099-
Leslie,
I'm not sure what you meant to say. I would suggest that you file a form 1040-X and amend your 2007 form 1040 to correct the omission of the 1099.
I have owned a house for 6 years and never knew I could og gotten back the interest I paid on our home, Can I do anything about that now?
Manuel,
You don't get the interest you paid refunded but you may have the opportunity to go back and amend the last 3 years tax returns and add the mortgage interest as an itemized deduction.
Hi Mish,
Thanks for your answer. Each of the 6years I paid about 8,000 each year. How do I amend this and what or how much do you think I will get back? Also about how much does it cost to do this? Thanks for your answers
Manuel
I just received a notice from the IRS stating I owed taxes from 3 years ago. Is this legally waived? Do I still have to pay these taxes, or do they write them off?
Cynthis,
This post deals with REFUNDS not balances due. Typically the Statute of Limitations on liabilities is ten years.
I found out that the IRS owes me over 10K, but it's been over 3 years and they're saying, "sorry but…" Is there any chance of getting at least part of that money? Thanks.
I HAVE TWO KIDS A 4 YEARS OLD AND A 3 YEAR OLD MY BOYFRIEND THE DADDY WORKED ALL YEAR AND WHEN HE DID THE TAXES FOR 2007 THEY GAVE US HALF OF OWR REFUND AND FROZE TEH REST THE CHANDED HEAD OF HOUSE HOLD AND TOOK HIS DEPENTS AWAY NOW NOT ONLY THE MONEY WE DIDNT GET THEY ARE SAYING WE OWE THE MONEY THAT THEY GAVE US SO NOW INSTEAD OF THE IRS GIVING THE RIGHT AMUNT TO US WE OWE THEM LIKE I SAID WE HAVE TWO KIDS AND BROKE TRYING TO PAY BILLS AND FOOD THE IRS WILL NOT EXPLIAN THIS TO US AND ON TOP OF THAT THEY ARE CHARGING INTREST
It's kind of hard to understand exactly what happened in your case but I think you're trying to say that your Earned Income Credit was denied and now the IRS is demanding repayment. A good place for you to start would be the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate. You can use this link to get contact information for your particular area. http://www.irs.gov/advocate/article/0,,id=97402,00.html
Tim,
Not much chance of recovering refund money after three years sorry.
Last year I did my income taxes incorrect and the IRS send me letter telling me that I did it incorrect and that they owe me some money and to fill out the bottom of the letter so they can further research it. So, I filled it out and the next month they send me the same letter saying that they are still researching it and to fill out the form again and return it, so I did. So, every month until August they sent me the same letter and filled it out and I returned it. So, in September I decided not to continue to send the letter since I have been sending them the same letter for the last 8 months, so I called them and they told me since I didn't send back the letter to them they closed the investigation. So, how can they close the investigation when they told me that owe me money and now I can't get the money they owe me or can I.
If I was getting paid a grant for housing in order to work for Resdience Life at College, which it was a requirement for me to live in the building, should I have paid taxes on that income? Will I be able to claim a refund based on the fact that this was an incentive to the school to have me live in the housing in order to do my job?
I did my state taxes online via Turbo Tax. As a result, the state of Mississippi should owe me close to $1000.00
I received a check from the state for $78 dollars with no explanation. What gives?
Today we just received and adjustment notice from our state saying we overpaid our taxes. It says: Please note – No bill or refund will be issued as a result of adjustment. How can they get away with that and not send me a refund? Why do I have to jump through all kinds of hoops to get it back? Once again, we see what a rip off the government is. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
The Irs took a payroll check from my husband almost 2 yrs ago and never applied it to his account. His company said they sent it off but the IRS says they never got it. We have faxed over all the forms to the IRS thats show's the check was cashed and cleared. We have been dealing with this for 2 yrs and can't really get anywhere with them. Any advice?
I would strongly suggest that you contact the Taxpayer Advocate using a form 911 that you can obtain from the IRS website at: http://www.getirshelp.com/irsblog/bz1 – those are the types of folks at the IRS that are "supposed" to fix this kind of thing. I imagine it's really been a nightmare for you to get this resolved.
My wife and I filed as "Married, but filing separately" in 2009, for the 2008 tax year. In July of '09, we purchased our first home. I filed our 1040x amendment on August 2nd, 2009 to claim our first-time homebuyer’s credit, as well as to change our filing status to "Married". After calling once in late November to check the status of our slow-moving refund, a representative from the IRS hotline aprised me of our pending return amount, and projected another couple weeks before we were to receive it. A month later, a letter, not a check, arrived indicating the amount due to us from the IRS. It furthermore indicated that if the check had not arrived already, it would arrive within 2 weeks. 5 weeks later (January 15th / last evening), I called to inquire again. This time, they found our records and informed us that there was no intent to mail us a check — that in fact we were do no return, but when I requested an explanation, they couldn't provide us with one. In fact, this time the representative told us that “she did not know why this had happened,” which was of course little help to us. Is the IRS at liberty to withhold these funds without explanation? Especially after mailing a statement acknowledging our due return? Any light you can shed on this little predicament would be very much appreciated – I’m practically turning cheetah-flips out of anger. Thanks in advance.
Chris,
This is a case calling out for the help of the Taxpayer Advocate take a look at that blog article and then contact your local Taxpayer Advocate as soon as possible. I'm extremely confident that you either get your refund back or an explanation as to why you did not. Examples of why you would not receive your refund would be, owing past child support, owing a prior tax debt, and arrearages on student loan payments.
I filed an amendment to my 2008 taxes when I found a W-2 I overlooked; which added $4,000 to my Adust. Gross Income. Turbotax said I should receive an additional $604.00 credit. 4 months later I receive a ltter from the IRS that says I OWE them $745.00!!!
HELP!!
I have tried to call the 800# multiple times only to wait 10 mins or more and have to hang-up because I am at work..
As a single mother, I claim the EIC and more and have ALWAYS had a refund; of course, the IRS letter does not explain where or how they figure I owe them!
Help!
Carol,
Contact the Taxpayer Advocate (by clicking here) they should be able to help you with the problem. These can be really frustrating problems. I really feel for you.
Hi there i was just wondering if the irs is realy going to follow through with my problem see last year 2009 i filed for 2008 for a return around 4.000 well the irs would not let me have that $ because they claimed i needed to file for 2003 / 2004 /2005/ they said they never had those years on file of me fileing so i did all they wanted and still no refund for 2009 but i did get for 2009 no problem .
so between 2002/2003/2005 it came out that i was owed almost 9.000 will i see any of that with it being so far back
How can i get money owed to me from irs about 5-7 years ago.
Most likely you can't because the refund statute has expired. Sorry to have to break the bad news.
how can i calculate the amount of interest i will get from the irs on $6024 from 2008
You actually need special software called TaxInterest. Probably not feasible to purchase in your situation.
Due to some life issues, I haven't filed my taxes yet. IRS owes me a small amount of money once I file, but strictly based on my 1099 gross, I owe them. Will I have any problems if I finally get my filing done in June?
My husband and I were audited in 2009 for the 2006 tax year. After a year of hassle and the patience of my tax accountant, we were awarded a refund. About how long once you submit the paperwork to the IRS does it take to actually receive the refund? It seems like we\\\'ve been waiting MONTHS to receive it.
I received a letter around the second week of March stating that I had claimed wrong and that they owed me roughly 250. The letter stated there was nothing else I needed to do and that the check would come to me in around 8-12 weeks. Should I wait a little longer or try to contact someone?
You could always contact the Taxpayer Advocate.
Usually about eight weeks.
Most likely not but you will be subject to interest and penalties.