If you are still waiting for your refund despite filing taxes early, there could be a few reasons for delayed refund from the IRS. The IRS usually issues a refund about two to three weeks after filing the return, but this year, some returns are getting delayed. The IRS has listed those reasons, and if those reasons apply to you, you need to patiently wait for your refund. If the reasons don’t apply to you, then you need to contact the IRS.
Reasons for delayed refund from the IRS
Tax season opened on January 29 this year. Considering the fact that the IRS takes fewer than 21 days (from the date of filing) to issue a refund, taxpayers who filed electronically and chose direct deposit to receive the refund would have received their refund from the IRS.
Some taxpayers, however, are still waiting for their refund, and there could be many reasons for a delayed refund from the IRS. One major reason your refund could be delayed is that your return requires additional processing time due to corrections. If the data on your return is inaccurate, the IRS then needs more time to seek correct data from you.
Another reason for a delayed refund could be the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC). You can expect your refund by February 27 if you claim the EITC or the ACTC, according to the IRS.
The IRS, by law, is required to wait until mid-February to issue refunds to taxpayers who claim the EITC. However, some EITC/ACTC filers could get refunds a few days earlier.
You can expect your refund by February 27 if you file your return online, choose direct deposit for your refund and the IRS finds no issues with your return. The delay could be longer if you filed the return manually or selected physical checks to receive the refund or if there are issues with your return.
Apart from these, reasons for delayed refund from the IRS could also be the inability of your financial institution to process the refund right away. Some financial institutions don’t process transactions on weekends or holidays. In such cases, federal and local holidays may delay your refund from the IRS.
How to check refund status
The IRS recommends that taxpayers check the status of their refund on the Where’s My Refund tool. “My Refund should show an updated status by February 17 for most early EITC/ACTC filers,” the IRS says.
Separately, taxpayers can also use the IRS2Go app to know the status of their refund. According to the IRS, it usually updates both applications with the latest data once a day.
The IRS expects over 128.7 million tax returns to be filed by the April 15 deadline. The deadline for Maine and Massachusetts residents, however, is April 17 because of the Patriot’s Day and Emancipation Day holidays.
