I have confirmed my admission to Virginia Tech. I submitted the FAFSA way back before March before the March 1 priority deadline. They had my FAFSA verified and they want a copy of my mom’s tax transcript OR for me to use the IRS data retrieval tool.
It has been over a month since my mom processed her taxes AND paid the amount that was due in full. She even confirmed with me that it was taken out of her bank directly.
I have tried every single day to use the IRS data retrieval tool and requesting a transcript by mail at this link:
Neither has worked. Last time I tried calling the IRS I was put on a 45 minute hold then I had to leave. I will try again Monday.
What do you guys suggest I do? All I need is a copy of her tax transcript. Everything was submitted electronically and her taxes that she owed paid in FULL! I don’t understand why they still have not processed it all. If I have no other choice but to wait I’m fine with that, but is there really now faster way?.I really don’t want any financial aid that I currently qualify for to get taken away or lessened.
Unfortunately, if she owed money, the transcripts don’t get processed immediately. There is a schedule online and I think they will not be processed until June. Same with getting to use the DRT.
Call the FA office and tell them that since your mother owed taxes, you cannot use the DRT or get a tax transcript at this time. Ask if they would like a copy of the first two pages of her return until the time you can get the transcript. A nice thing is that once the transcript is available, it only takes about a week to get it. You can go online to order it but they have to send it to you.
Have they awarded you conditional FA, like telling you what the Pell grant will be, or what other grants you might receive? If so, there is probably a ‘hold’ on your account and while you do need to clear that up, it may not change the amount you will receive come August. Just contact them, explain it, and ask what to do.
I guess you could call it conditional FA. They told me what my pell and state grants were as well as work study and loan amounts.
I will call their FA office again on Monday. Is there no point in trying to get in contact with the IRS at this time? I’ve searched on the forums and saw that some people were able to call their local office and have them fax their transcript to the FA office. I’m not sure if any of these people owed taxes though.
What is a tax transcript? Do you mean a tax return? Simply copy your mother’s 1040 and send a copy of the check (or account statement) she sent for the payment. If your mother is less efficient than the IRS you are in trouble.
A tax transcript is different than a tax return. I assume the transcript is more authoritative because it shows the return was actually filed; a person could send a copy of a return that has not been filed.
Basically, if your mother filed electronically and paid the amount owed in full, you need to wait 3 weeks for it to process. If she owed money and filed a paper return, it won’t be processed until June.
we had to pay last year and the transcript was made available about the last week of May, just before june (several months had passed after filing and check cleared).
another option is to call your congressman’s office. they can contact the IRS on your behalf. last year they were able to send our transcript to us just before it was made available officially.
the wait is tough, but since FA isn’t awarded til later in the summer so shouldn’t hurt you. lesson-learned: for FA peac of mind, make sure you get a refund
While a refund is certainly better than owing, I think the real key here for quicker availability of either the DRT or a tax transcript is to file electronically. Filing a paper return seems to really s–l–o–w things down. My kid owed, but an electronic return was filed and the DRT was available within about two weeks of the payment (paper check mailed with a payment voucher) being processed in early March.
If what Belk says is true, then there is no consistency. OP said they filed electronically. I guess all you can do is minimize the potential for a delay by not having to pay and filing electronically. we definitely had a delay last year with e-file and making a payment. same for OP it seems.
I missed the part where OP said that “everything we submitted electronically…” Maybe it has to do with when the electronic return was submitted. Earlier in the filing season has a much better chance of getting processed in a timely manner.
The best thing to do is file your tax return on February 1. That way, even if you have to wait, you likely will be fine to link to the IRS DRT in a timely fashion.
When you are applying for need based aid, you should complete your taxes as soon as possible. This is not the time to wait until closer to April.
The chart says if you owe money and file a paper return the transcript won’t be available until June. I think it is the electronic filing that helps the most, and I don’t know if paying electronically speeds it up any. The electronic payment my daughter made was processed by her bank within 2-3 days. If the person processing the return has the payment (electronically) and the return (electronically), it would make no sense for the person to just process it right then, just like an IRS clerk would processes the return with a refund in just one step. The paper return with the check or the electronic return with a paper check would make sense to need to be processed by two different clerks at two different times.
My mom filed ELECTRONICALLY and it has been over a month. That is why I don’t understand what is going on. She payed the amount in full and her taxes were submitted ELECTRONICALLY. On the chart @twoinanddone showed me, it says they should be done in 2-3 weeks.
I understand what you all mean by filing taxes in a timely manner, but it was out of my control this year. I tried to get my mom to file them as fast as possible but due to reasons unknown to me she would not file them when I asked.
I will be contacting the IRS right after I write this and I’ll let you guys know how it goes!
Not sure how true this is…but I have heard that the closer to April 15, the more people who file. Perhaps the issue is that there simply are a lot of others in the same boat.
