What to Do if the IRS Didn't Pay Your Return

If it's been several months since you filed your tax return and you haven't yet received anything from the IRS, you should take immediate action to find out its status. In some cases, the IRS cannot recover a refund because it went to a valid, but wrong account. Often, a return is caught up in administrative red-tape, especially if you still paper-file your return.

Call The IRS

You can call the IRS at [phone] as of 2011 to inquire about the status of your refund. You can also use the IRS's online refund tracking system to obtain the progress on your refund. However, you must wait until the IRS accepts your return before you can ask about its status. In general, you must wait 72 hours if you E-File your return or four weeks if you paper filed it.

Wait

It can take a while to process a tax return. If you paper filed your return and did not elect to direct deposit your refund into a bank account, it can take up to six weeks to receive your refund, according to Intuit. If you electronically filed your return and direct deposited your refund into an account, expect to receive the refund in eight to 14 days.

Considerations

If you paper filed, review the account you used to direct deposit your refund. If you listed an account number to a nonexistent account, the refund returns to the IRS and the agency sends a paper check to the address on your return. If the bank account number you gave is to a real account that does not belong to you, the deposit attempt will succeed, even if your name is not on the account. If your return went to an account that does not belong to you, you must contact the bank that services the account and ask them to give your refund back -- the IRS cannot reroute a refund deposited to a wrong account. If a paper refund goes to the wrong address or gets lost, the IRS can reissue it.

Tip

If you filed an amended return 1040X, you cannot use the IRS online tracking system to check on its progress and it can take up to 12 weeks to process this form. Also, avoid using the online refund tracking system at night, because this is when the IRS usually performs maintenance on its system. You might also need to wait for the IRS to inform you of a tax offset, such as if you owe child support, or the IRS discovered an error that reduces or eliminates your refund. In the future, always electronically file your return and double-check account numbers and their status to receive your refund as soon as possible.

References

• PennLive.com: Didn't Get Your Tax Refund? The IRS Is Looking For You
• Internal Revenue Service: How to Contact the IRS
• Intuit: When Will I Get My Tax Refund?
• MarketWatch: Direct Deposit Your Tax Refund? Be Careful
• Internal Revenue Service: Millions in Tax Refund Checks Go Undelivered
• "Forbes": The Month After: Refund Status, Lost Checks and Tax Planning

Resources

• Internal Revenue Service: Where's My Refund?