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Once you’ve filed your taxes, you might eagerly await your refund—especially if you have plans for that money. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says that nine out of ten taxpayers who file electronically can expect their refunds within 21 days.
However, if that timeframe has passed and your refund is still MIA, don’t panic just yet. Various factors could be causing the delay, from simple errors on your return to more complex issues like identity theft or tax fraud. Here’s what you need to know about tracking your refund and potential reasons for the hold-up.
Key Takeaways
- The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says that taxpayers who e-file can generally expect their refunds within 21 days.
- You can check on the status of your refund at the IRS’s Where’s My Refund? page.
- Reasons you haven’t received your refund can range from errors, incomplete returns, tax fraud, or unusually high processing volume at the IRS.
First, Check Your Refund Status Online
If you are wondering where your refund is, you can start by checking its status on the IRS’s Where’s My Refund? page. You’ll need:
Click on the “Check My Refund Status” button, supply the required information, and you’ll get results. Unfortunately, this tool does not provide much detail about why your money may be delayed. It may advise you to call the IRS, from which you should be able to learn more details.
If you don’t see details about the delay, the IRS advises contacting them only if:
- It has been 21 or more days since you e-filed.
- The Where’s My Refund? online tool tells you to contact the IRS.
7 Reasons Your Tax Refund Is Late
Many things can hold up the processing and delivery of your tax refund. For example, it could be delayed if you filed your return too early or waited until the last minute. If you tried to file in January, for example, a last-minute change to the tax code could have triggered an error on your return that slowed down the processing. Similarly, waiting until the last minute to get your return in can mean a longer wait for your refund if the IRS is backlogged with a larger-than-usual volume of returns.
Also, keep in mind that filing a paper return can slow things down. The fastest way to file—and to get your refund—is to do it electronically online. Here are some of the most common causes of delay:
1. Your Tax Return Contains Inaccurate Information
Numerical errors or other mistakes on your tax return can slow down your refund. If the IRS detects an error, your return will be flagged for human review, which adds days or weeks to the processing time.
2. Your Return Is Incomplete
An incomplete return can also trigger an IRS review, which could mean a longer wait for your refund. For example, if you filed a paper return and forgot to enter a key piece of information, such as your SSN, or neglected to sign your tax forms, the IRS won’t process your return until those issues are resolved.
3. You’re a Victim of Tax Fraud
Tax fraud occurs when someone uses your personal information to file a fraudulent tax return and claim a refund in your name. For the 2023 tax filing season, the IRS identified more than 337,662 fraudulent refund claims, with 87,591 of them tied to identity theft. If you think you’re a victim of tax-related identity theft, you can contact the IRS and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
4. Your Refund Was Sent to the Wrong Bank
Filing your return electronically is the fastest way to get your refund, especially if you’re using direct deposit. However, if you entered incorrect bank account details, your refund could end up in someone else’s account.
If your refund ends up in someone else’s bank account, you’ll have to work with the bank directly to get it back. The IRS says it can’t—and won’t—compel the bank to return your money to you.
5. You Claimed Certain Tax Credits
Certain Tax credits, such as earned income credit (EIC) and the additional child tax credit—often draw scrutiny from the IRS due to taxpayers claiming these credits fraudulently. If you claimed either credit, then that could be the reason why your refund hasn’t yet arrived.
6. You Amended Your Return
Amending a tax return can also create a delay. In 2020, the IRS changed the rules to allow for electronic filing of amended returns for certain forms. You can electronically file an amendment for Form 1040 or 1040-SR for tax years 2020 or later, or Form 1040-NR for tax year 2021 or later, as long as the original was also filed electronically. If you originally filed your return on paper, then the amended return must also be on paper. Due to processing delays, it may take more than 20 weeks to process your return, meaning that you may be waiting several months for your refund.
If you owe certain kinds of debts, then your tax refund may have been taken, or “offset,” by the IRS to pay them.
7. Your Refund Has Been Offset to Pay a Debt
If you owe certain debts—including unpaid child support, unpaid state taxes, or delinquent federal student loans—the IRS can offset your refund by the balance owed. If your refund is offset, you’ll receive a notice from the U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service advising you as to why your refund was taken and the agency to which the debt has been owed. You have the right to dispute the debt with the agency that received your refund.
How Long Will It Take to Get My Tax Refund?
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says that 90% of taxpayers who file their return electronically will get their refund within 21 days. That said, a sizable amount of refunds can be delayed beyond that, sometimes significantly.
What Are the Most Common Reasons for Delay?
An incomplete return, an inaccurate return, an amended return, tax fraud, claiming tax credits, owing certain debts for which the government can take part or all of your refund, and sending your refund to the wrong bank due to an incorrect routing number are all reasons that a tax refund can be delayed.
How Do I Check My Refund Status?
The IRS maintains a Where’s My Refund? page on its website. Go there and plug in your Social Security number (SSN) or individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN), filing status, and exact amount of your refund to get an update on where in the pipeline it is.
The Bottom Line
If your refund is late, it may be lost in the mail, stolen from your mailbox or affect by a government shutdown. If the Where’s My Refund? tool isn’t offering any answers, you can turn to your local IRS office for help. The IRS may be able to trace your refund to find out what has happened to it and issue a replacement if needed.