Free Republic

The average refund so far this tax season is ringing in at $1,395 compared to $1,963 last year... Tax refunds so far this year are markedly smaller than the same time a year ago, according to the earliest tax season data from the Internal Revenue Service. The average refund amount was $1,395 as of Feb. 2, down 28.9% from $1,963 for the same period last year, the IRS reported. That’s based on nearly 2.6 million refunds disbursed so far versus 7.9 million refunds disbursed by this point last year. The statistics for this year are based on five days of...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is paying $23 billion less in tax refunds for the 2023 filing season—with the average refund amount found to be lower by nearly $300. The IRS has issued over 69 million refunds collectively worth $198.868 billion for the week ending April 7, 2023, according to the agency’s filing statistics. Compared to the $222.344 billion in refunds handed out in the 2022 season, the 2023 filing season’s refund is $23.476 billion smaller or about 10.6 percent lower. The average refund amount between the filing seasons has dropped from $3,175 to $2,878, a decline of 9.3 percent...

VIDEOThat is a question that MILLIONS of Americans are asking right now. I can't remember a time when tax refunds have been delayed so long on such a mass scale. The federal government is waaaaaay delayed on sending us our tax refunds yet they are already planning on passing multi-trillion dollar spending programs? Beam me up, Scotty!Oh, and finally, WHERE'S MY DAMN TAX REFUND?

California Senator and left-wing presidential candidate Kamala Harris is lying about the new tax law, which she -- and every Democrat -- voted against in 2017. We recently highlighted new polling showing tax reform's popularity on the rise, presumably as many Americans discover that their tax rates went down in 2018. The very large majority of US taxpayers do not itemize deductions, opting for the straightforward standard deduction. The GOP-passed law doubled the standard deduction, meaning that most people can exempt a much larger chunk of their income from taxation -- $12,000 for individuals, $24,000 for couples, and $18,000...

WASHINGTON — Taxpayers who are owed refunds will be paid on time, despite the government shutdown that has closed many federal agencies, a Trump administration official said Monday as concern mounted over the risk that the payments could be delayed. The acting director of the White House budget office, Russell Vought, said customary rules will be changed to make the payments possible. He told reporters that an “indefinite appropriation” was available for the refunds, which would go out as normal. As it dragged through a third week, the partial government shutdown could not have come at a worse time for...

The neediest Americans will be short $100 billion in delayed tax refunds at a time when they're really counting on it. Chaos may ensue, an issue neither presidential candidate is addressing. In June, I sounded the alarm on How Congress is About to Screw Up the Economy in an Unprecedented Way. The more we learn about the PATH Act of 2015, however, the louder this alarm needs to be. First, a short primer on what's happening. The PATH Act stands for Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes. As a headline, it sounds commendable and does include legislation for more than $620...

Illegal immigrants granted amnesty under President Barack Obama's immigration reform will be able to claim back tax refunds from years in which they never filed taxes, the IRS said. According to the Washington Times, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told Congress in a letter the roughly 5 million illegal immigrants who could be granted amnesty under Obama's plan will be eligible to take advantage of the Earned Income Tax Credit. "To clarify my earlier comments on EITC, not only can an individual amend a prior year return to claim EITC, but an individual who did not file a prior year return...

First hand knowledge fact: The lower socioeconomic (lower income) folks are coming into the banks now with $6-8k refund checks the amount and volume of which are unprecedented. Some don't even have children. Don't know quite how this is happening, but it IS happening. Many are spending all of the money within a month. I am sorry, can not give specifics as peoples' jobs would be jeopardized.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- An Internet connection and a bunch of stolen identities are all it takes for crooks to collect billions of dollars in bogus federal tax refunds. And the scam is proving too pervasive to stop. A government report in November said the IRS issued $4 billion in fraudulent tax refunds over the previous year to criminals who were using other people's personal information. Attorney General Eric Holder said this week that the "scale, scope and execution of these fraud schemes" has grown substantially and the Justice Department in the past year has charged 880 people. Who's involved? In...

The Washington Post reports that hundreds of thousands of taxpayers who are expecting refunds this month are instead getting letters informing them that because of a debt they never knew about — often a debt incurred by their parents — the government has confiscated their check. http://m.washingtonpost.com/politics/social-security-treasury-target-hundreds-of-thousands-of-taxpayers-for-parents-old-debts/2014/04/10/74ac8eae-bf4d-11e3-bcec-b71ee10e9bc3_story.html?tid=HP_more

When I say “debts,” I don’t mean loans that the parents willingly sought from SSA. It would be bad enough to hold a kid responsible for that (since when are children responsible for their parents’ obligations?), but at least it would have been voluntarily incurred by mom/dad. The “debts” here are overpayments of Social Security benefits, the product of SSA’s own errors. The parents who received them might not have even realized they were getting money they weren’t supposed to have. And now, somehow, it’s junior’s problem.But wait. It gets worse. When [Mary] Grice was 4, back in 1960, her...

Woo hoo!! We're all gonna be rich!! Go, Bammy, GO!! http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/03/06/irs-tax-refunds-returns/6125597/

Taxpayers anxiously awaiting a tax refund from Uncle Sam may be waiting a bit longer this year. The sweeping automatic budget cuts set to take effect March 1 translates to an 8.2% funding cut to the IRS, according to reports, which could force the agency to furlough workers during tax season. ~snip~ And thanks to the fiscal cliff fiasco, the IRS is already behind, says David Selig, federal tax practicioner at Selig & Associates and founder of TrueTaxHelp.com. Tax changes included in the last-minute deal struck by Congress at the start of the year forced the IRS to quickly update...

(INDIANAPOLIS) - Millions of illegal immigrants are getting a bigger tax refund than you. Bob Segall, of WTHI reports finding a massive tax loophole that provides billions of dollars in tax credits to undocumented workers and, in many cases, people who have never stepped foot in the United States. And you are paying for it. I nside his central Indiana office, a longtime tax consultant sits at his desk, shaking his head in disbelief. "There is not a doubt in my mind there's huge fraud taking place here," he said, slowly flipping through the pages of a tax return. The...

BRONX (WABC) -- What is drawing huge crowds in the Bronx, people lining up around the block, to get into a storefront that houses a tax preparation office, what's really going on? People who went to the storefront asked Eyewitness News to investigate after they claim they were promised thousands of dollars in government surplus money that would be put on pre-paid debit cards. Now, the bank that issues those debit cards has put out a warning. "I'd like to talk to the boss," Eyewitness News Investigative Reporter Sarah Wallace said. "He's not here," security at E &M Multi Service...

(CBS) Some states suffering severe, recession-induced budget problems are holding off on paying tax refunds to people and businesses. North Carolina, Hawaii and Alabama are already doing it and others, such as New York and Kansas, might. The states are holding or may hold onto your money as long as they can because they need to use it for other purposes, tax expert and attorney Barbara Weltman told "Early Show" Saturday Edition" co-anchor Chris Wragge. You'll eventually get your refund, but when depends on where you live, she explained. Laws differ from state-to-state, but most states have to issue a...

Gov. Paterson Freezes $500 Million, Says Financial Situation The Case, Won't Start Sending Again Until April 1 Embattled Governor: $1.5 Billion In School Aid Next To Be Halted NEW YORK (CBS) ― For hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers, the check won't be in the mail -- at least not on time. New York State has stopped paying tax refunds and won't start again until next month. The tax refund delay is part of a bigger cash crunch. Message to New Yorkers: don't start spending your tax refund money because it's going to be delayed. Half a billion dollars' worth...

More states considering holding individual 2009 tax refunds until August/September. Other states to garnish wages for taxes due.

Man Pleads Guilty to Filing 250 Tax Returns for Dead People Riverside, Calif. (January 27, 2010) By WebCPA Staff A California man has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. after he was accused of filing at least 250 tax returns of deceased individuals. Haroon Amin of Upland, Calif., pleaded guilty Monday to the charges. He was indicted, along with Ather Ali of Diamond Bar, Calif., in December 2008. The two were accused of filing the returns in 2002 and 2003 falsely stating that the deceased individuals earned wages from which income tax was withheld. The false returns claimed...

Tax refunds are now being "delayed": ATLANTA (AP) - Colin Daymude was out of work last year after his business failed and eagerly filed his taxes in mid-January, figuring he'd get his refund sooner. He was wrong. It took the 44-year-old entrepreneur more than six months to get his $1,300 check—money that he needed to pay living expenses while he worked a few side gigs. Let's be clear: this is not the state's money. You do not owe more than your lawful tax amount. If you overpay, the state has the obligation to refund that amount as soon as it...