Where’s My Refund PATH Act Update

EITC and ACTC Refunds Expected to Arrive the Week of Feb. 27

The IRS recently sent out a press release letting all of the EITC and ACTC Tax Delay taxpayers know that their refunds should arrive by February 27th. Previously Where’s My Refund had a PATH act and then a processing message. Currently most taxpayers are seeing a tax refund date of 2/22/2017 or 2/23/2017. We estimate that all tax refund dates will be updated next week with refunds beginning Friday 2/17/2017.

WASHINGTON — As the IRS begins releasing refunds for taxpayers who claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit, the tax agency reminded taxpayers that they should not expect refunds to be available in bank accounts or on debit cards until the week of Feb. 27. The additional time is due to several factors, including weekends, the Presidents Day holiday and the time banks often need to process direct deposits.

Many of these refunds had been held since the filing season started in late January due to new requirements the 2015 Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act.

Source: IRS.gov

What is the PATH Act?

A new tax law requires the IRS to hold entire refunds of millions of taxpayers until at least Feb. 15. This law, called the PATH Act, contains provisions that help combat tax fraud and may impact approximately 15 million taxpayers who claim the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit. For those who file early, they will have to wait until at least Feb. 15 to get their full refund from the IRS.

While the IRS will release those refunds on February 15, many taxpayers may not see the funds deposit into their banking accounts until the week of February 27. This additional delay could be for many reasons and it is best for taxpayers to check the IRS’s Where’s My Refund website for any funding updates.

Our sister site has a daily update regarding the PATH act, find it here.

2019 IRS Where’s My Refund Updating Schedule

There are two ways of estimating when you will get your 2016 Tax Refund. The more user friendly simple Refund Schedule, 2019 IRS E-File Cycle Chart for Tax Year 2018. After the IRS stopped releasing a refund schedule, they begin using a  much more advanced  IDRS (Integrated Date Retrieval System) TIF Processing, Production, and Posting Cycles. This is much more difficult for the common(non-accountant) to understand, but we wanted to provide it to our users as a way to help better understand the IRS Where’s My Refund timelines. Where’s My Refund Updating Schedule below:

Tax season 2016 to begin 1 day earlier than Tax Season 2015.

The IRS announced the start day for 2015 tax return acceptance. Tax season 2016 to begin 1 day earlier than Tax Season 2015. ” when can you file taxes?” 2016 details below. Continue reading…

Tax Season 2015 starts January 23rd 2015.

The I.R.S is expected to start accepting 2015 tax returns as of January 23rd, 2015 per the 2015 IRS Refund Cycle Chart. This doesn’t mean that you will not be able to submit your 2014 tax return to the I.R.S before then though. All of the I.R.S. tax forms are usually available by January 5th (2015). If filing by January 23rd, 2015, check our 2015 IRS Refund Cycle Chart to see when you will get your return back. Also if you will owe taxes in 2015, this can give you an idea of the earliest date that you would need to pay them. Tax Season 2015 will begin very soon, so the time to start preparing is now. Continue reading…

Why is my 2014 refund still processing?

2014 IRS Tax Refund Schedule wrong for you?

By the stats, the current tax season has been quite a success. The Internal Revenue Service is reporting that, despite an abbreviated season, they are processing tax returns and issuing tax refunds at a much faster pace than last year. Why is my 2014 refund still processing?

Of course, all of the numbers in the world don’t matter when the one number you’re counting on – your own refund – is affected.

This season, I’ve heard from a number of taxpayers experiencing tax refund delays (though certainly nothing near last year’s education credit snafu). Initially, the trouble seemed to focus on those 1121 codes. The IRS was made aware of the problem and did issue a statement, saying: Continue reading…

Millions of taxpayers have already received big refund checks, as the 2014 tax filing season seems to be humming along without a hitch. IRS issuing many refund checks already.

It’s not too surprising that this filing season is running more smoothly than last year, when the IRS lagged the previous year’s pace for issuing refunds throughout most of the filing season. The agency had to put off accepting certain tax forms until as late as March because it was updating its systems following the tax-code revamps caused by the fiscal-cliff legislation.

But taxpayers are also submitting their returns more quickly. The IRS received more than 27 million returns as of Feb. 7, up 2.5% from the same time in 2013. Nearly 96% of those were filed electronically. Samuel Hale, 21, a college student near Fort Worth, Texas, says his refund was deposited into his checking account Friday morning, a week after he filed his return electronically using online software. “I was very surprised,” says Hale, who couldn’t file his return until April last year because of a missing W-2 form.

In an interesting shift, the data shows more taxpayers are doing their own returns so far this tax season. Roughly half of the returns submitted, or 13.3 million, were self prepared, up 14.7% from last year. Typically, about 60% of returns are handled by a tax pro, according to IRS data.

Of course, not all taxpayers have been able to file their returns yet. Some people are still waiting on paperwork from their brokers, employers or colleges that they need to report all income and claim certain tax breaks. And some people aren’t eager to file their returns. Taxpayers who need to cut a check to the IRS generally wait until closer to April 15 to file.

Taxpayers can track their refunds using the  “Where’s My Refund?” tool starting 24 hours after filing electronically, or four weeks after mailing in a return. About 90% of refunds are issued within 21 days, though some may be delayed if there is an issue with the return.

Discuss this and more on the Income Tax Forums.

Tax Refund 2014 – 2/14/2014 turbo tax netspend

It’s that time of year again. You know, the time of year where you’re relegated to doing a lot of waiting. And waiting. It’s hard, I know, between the delayed opening for tax season and the terrible weather that we’re experiencing in parts of the country. Things are moving kind of slow. Plus side? They are moving. Here’s the skinny so far:

I know, you’re already fretting about where your refund might be. The good news is that I’ve heard that refund checks are slowly making their way to your bank accounts. If you’re wondering where yours might be, you can check the“Where’s My Refund?” online tool at IRS: you can check on your status within 24 hours after the Internal Revenue Service has received your e-filed return or four weeks after you mail a paper return. The system is available pretty much all of the time but it does shut down from time to time for updating, specifically the system is unavailable every Monday from 12:00 am (Midnight) to 3:00 am EST.

There are three stages of refund claims according to the system: (1) Return Received, (2) Refund Approved and (3) Refund Sent.

Return Received means… well, you can figure that one out.

Refund Approved means that the IRS has processed your return and your refund has been approved. The IRS will send your refund to your bank via direct deposit or directly to you in the mail if you requested a paper check. The fastest way to get your refund is by using direct deposit.

Refund Sent means that your refund is on the way. If the IRS has sent your refund to your bank or other financial institution for direct deposit, it may take 1 – 5 days to deposit the funds into your account. If you requested a paper check, it could take several weeks for your check to arrive in the mail; the same time frame applies to debit cards.

Expect to see your refund in hand within 21 days though, anecdotal, if you use a combination of e-filing and direct deposits, last year taxpayers reported receiving their refunds with ten days of filing (fingers crossed). The system is only updated once a day (usually at night) so the IRS is imploring you to only check once a day – so many folks checked repeatedly last year that it crashed the system.

If you have limited access to internet, the IRS does have phone and walk-in updates for refunds. With limited available resources, they’re not excited about picking up the phone – but they will (maybe). But you will have to wait. They can only answer questions in person or by phone if it’s been 21 days or more since you filed electronically, or more than 6 weeks since you mailed your paper return.

It’s possible your tax return may require additional review and take longer. This can happen when the return has errors or is missing information. Take the extra time to double-check the return before you send it so that you can avoid any obvious and silly mistakes, like forgetting to sign the return. If there are other issues, like duplicate claims for dependents (happens with divorces quite often), injured spouse claims or identity theft or fraud, the IRS will have to investigate a little and that will slow your refund.

If you need to file an amended return, be prepared to wait. Processing times alone for amended returns can take up to sixteen weeks. You can check on the status of refunds related to amended returns by using the “Where’s My Amended Return?” tool on the IRS website.

And that brings up another issue: certain returns are a bit complicated. And processing times are longer for those returns. And you don’t want to wait. I know that you don’t want to wait because I’ve seen your emails – you know, the ones with all of your creative strategies for getting your refunds faster than you are supposed to. So let me help you out: don’t cheat to get your money faster. It’s simply not smart.

Yes, I’ve seen and heard all of the tricks. Filing as HOH to get the refund now and amending later. Filing with more dependents than you’re entitled to and figuring it out later. Overstating deductions. Understating income. And I know that you’re going to explain to me that it’s fine because you know your Uncle Jimmy did it and he got away with it. Well, super for Uncle Jimmy. But the reality is that lying on your return is wrong. It’s also criminal.

Even assuming that you don’t get charged criminally for fraud, the IRS does track patterns of tax behaviors. And if they notice that you happen to be the taxpayer who files for refund each February and amends each April, you’ll eventually be flagged. And in addition to slowing future refunds, you’ll also get socked with a pretty nasty punch. Trust me. These are the clients who end up in my office with a tax liability nearly two or three times the original amount owed once the penalties and interest have been piled on. It’s not smart. It’s wrong. And it’s completely not worth it.

So there you have it. The quick and dirty state of tax refunds for 2014 to date. Unlike last year’s fiasco with the educational credits, I haven’t heard of any patterns of errors on the part of IRS or any specific software companies. I’m constantly checking for you and I’ll be posting updates as they are made available.

Until then, be patient, be diligent and try not to rub that whole you’re-getting-a-refund thing in our faces. Some of us might be a little bitter.

Learn about Topic 152. Discuss this on the Income Tax Forums.

First IRS 2014 Direct Deposits Just Went Out.

February 6th, 2014, 12:00A.M. the I.R.S. sent out thousands of tax payments to individuals who filed before January 31st, 2014. Some individuals who filed before January 31st, 2014 were not included in this due to the overflow of individuals who submitted their returns. Those individuals should watch the Where’s My Refund page and expect a payout on the next payout day being “on or before February 13th, 2014.”

Also a very important note: “if your payment was sent to like turbotax type where it has to go through another bank to take out fees then you have to wait until that bank opens and they will process them. Some banks are not open yet so check your accounts later this morning or afternoon.”

Please reply to this post when you submitted, were accepted, approved, and if you received your refund last night.

Today is the official start to the I.R.S. 2013 Tax Season. We want to compile a list of payments dates for our users to see to better help them determine the date that they will get their refund. So we pose the question, “When did you get your refund 2014?”

We would like everyone to reply to this post with the date that their refund was accepted and the date that I.R.S. has set for their direct deposit or check. To find out this date, you will need to visit the I.R.S. Where’s My Refund webpage.

Optionally, we would also like you to post the date that your state refund, what state, and when your state finance department gives your refund date. To find out this, visit our Where’s My State Refund page.

Please comment below with Federal Acceptance Date, Federal Payout Date, (optional) State Acceptance Date, State, and State Acceptance Date.

Thank you for helping to make our 2014 Refund Schedule to be as accurate as possible.

Discuss this on The Income Tax Forums.

The Internal Revenue Service begun accepting returns January 24th, 2014.

We have received hundreds of reports that the I.R.S. has been accepting tax returns before January 31st, 2014. It seems that they have started accepting select few income tax returns on January 24th 2014. We contacted the I.R.S. on that day and were told that to help with the case load, they have accepted some returns early. They plan is to accept returns all next week that meet very strict rules. We have adjusted our 2014 IRS E-File Cycle Chart to match with the reports that we have received. Continue reading…