Thursday, July 25, 2013

State Income Tax Refunds Delayed

I have been used to receiving any state or federal income tax refunds owed to me towards the end of May.  But this year my state income tax refunds (I was not due a federal refund) were much delayed.  My New Jersey state income tax refund finally arrived yesterday, more than 3 months after I filed.  The federal government pays interest on income tax refunds after 45 days but New Jersey gives itself a rather generous 6 months .

And my New York state income tax refund still hasn't arrived.  Apparently New York changed contractors and this has led to delays.  At least New York also pays interest after 45 days (on excess withholding).

13 comments:

  1. It's now about a month later . . . have you received your NY refund yet? (I'm assuming you filed a paper return.)

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  2. My NYS refund has yet to arrive. According to this 8/15 news article about the situation processing should be complete by the end of the month (August). I am not holding my breath however, apparently the change of contractors has led to serious problems in the processing of paper returns like mine.

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  3. I work for the company (SourceHOV) that is processing your return (and thousands of others). Not holding your breath is a good idea. I had previously worked for the former contractor (Bank of America). We'd be done each year by early May.

    A brief post when you finally get your refund would be appreciated.

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  4. I will keep you posted. I suspect my return is a bit more complicated than average which may delay things further. Fortunately the amount involved isn't that large.

    Sounds like you might have some tales to tell. Is the problem just the data entry? That seems like it should be fairly routine for an experienced contractor but I guess problems could arise with someone doing it for the first time.

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  5. While some of the problems could be chalked up to the contractor being new at this, it seems to me they underestimated the (relative) complexity of the process (which is not to say it's rocket science). The servers are not up to the task and the software is riddled with problems, some longstanding (which should have been fixed by now) and some which, inexplicably, continue to be created.

    Many of the data entry staff previously worked for Bank of America ("across the street") and know what they're doing so they're understandably frustrated. What surprises me is how, with few exceptions (notably James Odato of the Albany Times Union), this continues to largely fly under the radar. What's also disturbing is that many of the (few) articles seem to suggest that the problem is somehow associated with the primary contractor (NYSID) and, by extension, "the disabled". This is most definitely not the case.

    Your refund, like those of many others, may be small but it seems to me that, for many people, the smaller the refund, the more it matters that they get it back in a timely manner. For some it could mean the difference between paying the rent on time or not. More than a few taxpayers have sent in their return a second time, figuring the first one must have somehow gotten lost. Needless to say, this does nothing to expedite the process.

    Stay tuned.

    And keep breathing.

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    Replies
    1. I still havn't received my NY state tax refund. I filed(paper filing) in late. March

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  6. Sorry to hear you haven't got your refund. You might try calling the NYS tax people and asking what's up, I was able to contact them by phone without spending too much time on hold.

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    1. do you know the number? I tried calling all the number listed on their web but all of them are automated messages.
      thank you

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  7. The number I called is 518-485-6549 which is the number for questions about refunds received. According to their website 518-457-5149 is the number for questions about the status of your refund. Now that you mention it I think an automated system answered initially but I was able to get to a human without too much trouble.

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    Replies
    1. thank you I will try that number again. crossing my finger.

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  8. James, have you received your NYS tax refund yet? I ask because mine was filed back in April and despite multiple calls, etc, I am still waiting for my refund.

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  9. Yes, I received my refund near the end of August. See my August 30 follow up post.

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    Income Tax Refund

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