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H&R Block tax filing blunder could delay 600,000 returns for four to six weeks

H&R Block tax filing blunder could delay 600,000 returns for four to six weeks

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Fake tax return
Fake tax return

Apparently filing your taxes early can be a bad thing if you're an H&R Block customer. The company today confirmed that a bug in its software will impact "some" tax returns filed between February 14th and 22nd, 2013. Affected filings "included certain education tax credits claimed on Form 8863" according to the announcement posted on its website. The IRS believes ten percent of returns including the credits were affected; Business Insider says that roughly equates to 600,000 people. Unfortunately the IRS now has to go through and review each of the included filings manually, a process that could delay customers from getting their return checks for up to six weeks.

If you're one of the unlucky ones, (and somehow weren't already aware), H&R Block has promised that you'll be hearing from them directly starting today. According to the company, some customers are already seeing their return status progress, a sign the IRS is indeed trying to expedite the review process. The blunder is a bit embarrassing for H&R Block, particularly since the finance company has been targeting TurboTax heavily in advertising this year, trying to lure customers away from the popular app that lets them file taxes using only a smartphone.