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Also, you mean "refund", not return, which is what you file with the IRS.
Tens of millions of taxpayers have received federal tax refunds. However, there are many more millions who are still waiting.
Did you e-file your tax return and was it accepted?
Only the IRS and your State control when and if a Federal or State tax refund is Approved and Issued.
You complete your tax return by finishing all 3 Steps in the File section. In Step 3, to e-file your tax return, you must click on the large button labeled "Transmit my returns now".
After completing the File section and e-filing your tax return you will receive two emails from TurboTax. The first email when your tax return was transmitted and the second email when the tax return has either been accepted or rejected.
Note - Once a tax return has been Accepted by the IRS or a State, TurboTax receives no further information concerning the tax return or the status of any tax refund. Only the taxpayer listed on the tax return can obtain the status of a tax refund or a tax return.
To check the status of an e-filed return, open up your desktop product or log into your TurboTax Online Account. You can find your status within the TurboTax product.
If accepted by the IRS use the federal tax refund website to check the refund status - https://www.irs.gov/refunds
If accepted by the state use this TurboTax support FAQ to check the state tax refund status - https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1899433-how-do-i-track-my-state-refund
After the tax return has been Accepted by the IRS (meaning only that they received the return) it will be in the Processing mode until the tax refund has been Approved and then an Issue Date will be available on the IRS website.
Go to this IRS website for the status of filed tax returns - https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-operations-during-covid-19-mission-critical-functions-continue
As of July 22, 2022, we had 10.5 million unprocessed individual tax year 2021 returns. Of these, 1.7 million returns require error correction or other special handling, and 8.8 million are paper returns waiting to be reviewed and processed. This work does not typically require us to correspond with taxpayers but does require special handling by an IRS employee so, in these instances, it is taking the IRS more than 21 days to issue any related refund and in some cases this work could take 90 to 120 days. If a correction is made to any Recovery Rebate Credit, Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit claimed on the return, the IRS will send taxpayers an explanation. Taxpayers are encouraged to continue to check Tax Season Refund Frequently Asked Questions.
How long you may have to wait: The IRS understands the importance of timely processing of tax returns and refund issuance. We have processed all error free returns received prior to January 2022 and continue to work the returns that need to be manually reviewed due to errors. We are continuing to reroute tax returns and taxpayer correspondence from locations that are behind to locations where more staff is available, and we are taking other actions to minimize any delays. Tax returns are opened and processed in the order received. As the return is processed, whether it was filed electronically or on paper, it may be delayed because it has a mistake including errors concerning the Recovery Rebate Credit and the Child Tax Credit, is missing information, or there is suspected identity theft or fraud. If we can fix it without contacting you, we will. If we need more information or need you to verify that it was you who sent the tax return, we will write you a letter. The resolution of these issues could take 90 to 120 days depending on how quickly and accurately you respond, and the ability of IRS staff trained and working under social distancing requirements to complete the processing of your return.
What you should do: In most instances, no further action is needed but you may check Where’s My Refund? or you can view your account. If you filed electronically and received an acknowledgement, you do not need to take any further action other than promptly responding to any requests for information. If you filed on paper, check Where’s My Refund? If it tells you we have received your return or are processing or reviewing it, we are processing your return, but it may be under review. If you filed before January 2022 and Where’s My Refund? does not have any information, your return has been opened but work on it has not begun. We’re working hard to get through the carryover inventory. Please don’t file a second tax return or contact the IRS about the status of your return.
@angelo0213- p short story: if you paper filed, it'll be 6-9 months from the time you mailed the return until the IRS processes it.
Hi -
I have a similar question, more or less. The IRS refused to accept my electronic return due to identity theft, so I mailed the paper copy on 4/15.
As @DoninGA pointed out and @NCperson summarized, the IRS website states issues like identity theft will delay processing, and a refund may take as long as 6 months.
However, the IRS.gov Refund Status Results page does not even confirm receipt. Instead, "We cannot provide any information about your refund. Be sure to verify your filing date; check with your tax preparer. If you filed a complete and accurate tax return, your refund should be issued within six weeks of the received date. However, processing may take longer under certain circumstances."
Curiously, I already received a state income tax rebate based on the information in my paper federal 1040 form.
Questions:
The situation is complicated by the fact that a work opportunity decision may depend on verification of my tax information. So, any insights you may have are very appreciated!
1) yes, the state does presume the federal is correct. Give it a few years and the IRS will send files to the State so the state can match the AGIs together. but for the near term, the state presumes the federal return is correct.
2) the IRS doesn't share the status of your return with anyone but you as its confidential information. So Turbo Tax doesn't know anything else
3) as far as the WMR tool, think about it, there are millions of returns sitting in enveloped stacked up at the IRS. They haven't even looked at them! why would you think there would be something on the website about the status. The lack of a status means no one has looked at it yet - it's stored in a 40 foot truck at the IRS service centers with all the other millions of paper files!
4) and to set your expectations, it's not wait "up to 6 months". it's expect it to be 6-9 months! The IRS website currently states they have finished all tax returns received through December, 2021 and I can see on some Face Book group pages that many are seeing movement on their paper returns submitted in Feb. So if the IRS is working on Feb paper filed returns (and they do work in the order received), we are already at the 6 month backlog point....so assume 6-9 months is where it is going to land from the time you submitted your paper return.
the IRS is making progress- this is taken from their website over the past few weeks:
As of June 17, 2022, we had 11.2 million unprocessed individual returns which include returns received before 2022, and new tax year 2021 returns. Of these, 2 million returns require error correction or other special handling, and 9.2 million are paper returns waiting to be reviewed and processed.
As of July 15, 2022, we had 11 million unprocessed individual tax year 2021 returns. Of these, 1.9 million returns require error correction or other special handling, and 9.1 million are paper returns waiting to be reviewed and processed.
As of July 22, 2022, we had 10.5 million unprocessed individual tax year 2021 returns. Of these, 1.7 million returns require error correction or other special handling, and 8.8 million are paper returns waiting to be reviewed and processed.
Thank you for the quick response.
I appreciate the clarifications. I must have misinterpreted the IRS advice to "check with your tax preparer" and didn't have the page specifying "6-9 months" visible when preparing the question. As for the 40-foot truck of returns, I must have wrongly assumed there would be some process of receiving the mail, recording its arrival, then throwing it on the shelf until it is fully processed with the rest of the returns, which in retrospect may require more steps than I'd originally considered. In the future, if I want confirmation that the IRS has at least received the return, I should instead send the return by registered postal mail. Again, thank you.
@mcruser - any reason you can't efile? Turbo Tax doesn't charge for efiling the federal return. State is also free for the online version, but does cost $25 for the CD / Download version. (I use the download version and mail the state return to avoid the $25 charge) if there were no errors, an efiled federal tax return is procssed by the IRS in about 3 weeks.
Thanks - I would love to e-file! That is normally how I file my taxes. Unfortunately, someone else had filed using my child's social security number, and any evidence of identity theft requires paper filing. At least I've gotten some reassurance today that the slow processing of my return is actually well within the norm for an insufficiently staffed IRS this year.
@mcruser got it.... are you aware of the PINs?
if you sign up for the PIN, only the person who submits the PIN with the efiled tax return can file electronically. (and presumably you are the only person that knows the PIN). The other person can't efile and is forced to paper file; might cause them to NOT add a dependent that they are not supposed to as the return will be closely scrutinized (because the IRS knows there is a PIN associated with your child's tax return and it wasn't on the paper filed copy by the perpetrator)..
it could really protect you going forward
https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/get-an-identity-protection-pin
That sounds great. Oddly enough, I've already got a PIN following a related problem several years ago. I'm not sure why it didn't work out, but I'll plan to keep using it. Thanks!
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