Ask Terry Questions Tax Refund

Tax Refund

By Terry Savage on April 20, 2022 | Taxes & Economy

Hi Terry,

My parents received letter 5071C requesting to go online and answer questions to move along process to receive 2020 tax refund. In doing so IRS says they cannot process information, and call number on screen. Which I have called at 7am when IRS accepts calls throughout day until they close at 7pm, always to get the same automated message, “We’re sorry, but due to high volume calls we cannot complete your call at this time. Please try again.” I am frustrated. I have gone back online repeatedly as well, and had my accountant also try to complete online and by phone with no luck. Something is truly broken here. I have been calling 800.830.5084. Any advice? I can’t be the only one. I was thinking to reach out to the media’s investigative teams for help.

Terry Says

For starters create an account with the IRS ID.me service. Read this article for directions.
That should let you know more about what is missing — or whether you might have been victims of identity theft.

If that doesn’t work, try contacting the IRS Taxpayer Advocate service: https://www.irs.gov/taxpayer-advocate

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