Did you owe more than $7,500 in taxes? The Federal tax credit is a credit against the taxes that you owed. The value on line 22 of IRS Form 8936 must be $7,500 or greater in order to receive the entire $7,500. If you filled out the Form incorrectly, you will need to file an amended return to get the rest of the tax credit.
I owed more than 7500. I dont know yet if it was that screw up or something else. certainly perked their curiosity when I had that much refund coming back. And then they may have done some clerical error. It was also first year I had to claim child as dependent even though she filed her own tax form or rather I filed on her behalf.
JKroll Could be the info on the car was entered incorrectly. The tax program asks for battery size along with dates, model etc. Once info is entered, the program will indicate how much the vehicle entered is eligible for. If the info is entered correctly it will display $7500. As indicated in the earlier post...then it becomes an issue of how much tax you owe to actually receive the full credit. If you owed enough tax...I'd look at the values entered for the Clarity to see if the program recognized the full value...or not...for whatever reason.
How exactly did "they" messed up your return? You requested a refund for $10,000 based on your filing, and they only sent you a refund of $2,500 with no written explanation? In my past experience they either accept your payment, or give you your refund, exclusively based on the bottom line number YOU filed. Even if it is wrong. And if they're going to mess with it, it is much later on down the road via a mailed letter pointing out an error they think they caught and/or requesting additional info, or an actual audit notice. Then if monetary adjustments are found to be warranted, additional payment/refund is handled at that time, as needed.
Yes, the $7500 federal tax credit for the Clarity is still available. As @craze1cars asked above, what did the IRS do with your return?
my claimed refund was 9800 they are only refunding me 7100 I dont know the breakdown yet. I dont know if it was mistake on my part yet but that is less likely
That’s odd. Without any written notice? Obviously only they will know the answer. I got about $9800 myself this year. Mostly the result of the $7500 Clarity obviously. It was just direct deposited no questions asked. I don’t think they blink at “large” refunds.
with my luck i might have just got a slow IRS officer or they think it would not be worth my time disputing the difference
There really isn’t someone at the IRS looking through returns trying to figure out who they can rip off or not based whether or not they think you have the time to dispute it. They just rip off everyone.
How was your return prepared? Tax Software (and brand)? Online version or download/purchase? Doesn't sound like you used an accountant or tax prep service.
You are giving the IRS too much credit. No human has even looked at your filing yet. I screwed mine up this year. I misread my records and put down a payment that was actually for 2017. The computer caught this and issued me a refund for less than I expected, along with a letter explaining the adjustment. I doubt that there was any human input at all. If you don't receive an explanation or you have an issue with the explanation, there is a well defined appeal process.
Per my Tax and Financial Planner with whom I have had a long relationship and trust implicitly, there is no place on Form 8936 to enter battery size. If you go to the instructions for line 4a, you should have entered $7,500 since the Clarity meets the conditions of at least a 4 kW battery and GVW <14,000 lbs. instructions here: https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i8936 Honda has already provided the IRS with the information that the Clarity meets the standards for the full $7,500 credit and the IRS has accepted that. Information on pertinent IRS Code Section 30D available here: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/irc-30d-new-qualified-plug-in-electric-drive-motor-vehicle-credit So your preparer should have entered the correct information on lines 1 through 4 and you should get the full credit. You need to check that the correct Year/make/ model, VIN, date placed in service, $7,500, and 100% Phaseout percentage were entered. Then you get the full credit if and only if line 11 (line 45 for 1040NR) from your 1040 (minus personal credits, see instructions) is => $7,500. Full disclosure: I am not an accountant nor certified tax preparer and do not claim to be. Just trying to help you figure it out with the information you provided. Please check your Form 8936 and let us know if it was filled out correctly and what the forthcoming IRS letter says. Best of luck to you.
Ahh.....so there could have been any number of reasons for a reduced refund amount. I hope it wasn't a Clarity issue. That should have been straightforward.
So my refund was less than 7500.. why? Because this year I owed a few hundred instead of receiving a refund of a few hundred, due to the tax law changes.. I'm not an accountant nor play one on TV. But I've recently stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.. Basically, look at your form 8936, line 4a/b/c - It should say 7500/100%/7500. And of course, your tax liability had to be more than 7500. If not, you made a mistake elsewhere.