Stimulus Direct Deposit: Paid TurboTax With My Refund. Does IRS Have MY Bank Account Info?

[JohnA-NJ]

On a side note, "Pay With My Refund" is a complete ripoff.  I didn't notice the fine print... but they charge you a whopping $40 above and beyond the TT fee just to use this option!  You're better off putting it on a CC.  Never again. Ever.

[Tanta]

True. I don’t know how I didn’t use the free tool on the website. 

[Tanta]

Oh and SBTG is not a parent company to Greendot. 

[JohnA-NJ]

@Tanta  

Other way around!  Green Dot is indeed the parent company of SBTPG.

In fact, if you go to the SBTPG website (https://www.sbtpg.com/) , you'll see "A Green Dot Company" at the bottom of the page, on the right-hand side of the footer.

[JohnA-NJ]

[ NOTE - I'm not sure why this commentary keeps getting deleted.  Am I saying something controversial or objectionable?  I've made it clear it's my interpretation and I welcome corrections. ]

Unfortunately, there are still no clear answers for those of us who chose "Pay With My Refund"
with Santa Barbara TPG (SBTPG) acting as the intermediary using direct deposit into a bank
account (not a card). This is how I interpret multiple answers I’ve read from TurboTax support
staff so far:

* Even though YOUR bank account number appears in the direct deposit section, boxes 21(b) and
21(d) of the 1040 form you access via your TurboTax login, it does not necessarily mean it is
the account info that was filed with the IRS.

* More likely, your actual filing with the IRS had a routing/account number for SBTPG so they
could receive your refund, deduct the TurboTax fees, and then transfer the adjusted amount to
your account.

* If this is the case, it is possible that the IRS does NOT have your correct direct deposit
information.

* The TurboTax online support staff appear to have not yet been given guidance on this and are
awaiting answers as well.

* SBTPG’s site has a stimulus page that’s been cited on this forum, but as of now it does not
directly address TurboTax customers: https://www.sbtpg.com/coronavirus-stimulus-payment-info/

* There is no information the IRS can provide that speaks to this scenario, it is really a
question for Intuit and SBTPG to answer.

Looking forward, hopefully, either:

1) There is already an established mechanism in place between intermediaries like SBTPG and the
IRS in which they provide the customer’s ACTUAL account number secondarily with the original
filing in case it is needed for an occasion like this. If so, the IRS will already have our
account numbers and use them, or...

2) SBTPG will receive our stimulus payments and route them right into our bank accounts, just as
they did with our refunds, or...

3) SBTPG and/or Intuit are now actively working with the IRS to amend deposit account numbers
ASAP for "Pay With My Refund" customers so they can receive their stimulus deposits without
taking further action or incurring any delays.

I welcome any corrections if I’m wrong. 🙂 

[JohnB5677]

Your stimulus check will go to the bank listed on your tax return.

If you have your tax return it is listed on page 2 of your 1040 on lines 21 b & c

It is also noted at the top of the filing Instructions.

[JohnA-NJ]

Hi @JohnB5677 , thanks for your reply.   Not to doubt what you say, but do you have definitive word on this?  

As I've noted, the correct account numbers do indeed show on the return copy you can access in TurboTax. 

But due to the "refund by proxy" switcharoo that happens when you go through SBTPG I am wondering how this actually works.  Our refunds first went to SBTPG who then deducted the TurboTax fee and then deposited the remainder into our declared bank accounts.  That leads me to believe that the IRS has SBTBG's account info, and SBTBG has ours. 

Since this likely affects thousands of TurboTax customers, it would be nice to have a clear, definitive communication of how this will work on the TurboTax website and via emails to affected customers. 

[KrisD15]

This is the latest statement we have:

"The IRS is sending stimulus payments to eligible taxpayers who filed a tax return in either 2019 or 2018 and chose direct deposit, and is depositing some stimulus payments onto prepaid debit cards for filers that chose to receive their refund through that method.

For the majority of prepaid debit card holders there is nothing more to do as the stimulus payment will be deposited to their account. If your customer no longer has access to their debit card, we encourage them to visit https://turbodebitcard.intuit.com"

We are telling you what we know. We do not want to spread misinformation. 

Please use the link below for the latest from the IRS:

Thank you for using TurboTax and please stay safe and strong. 

IRS Link

[JohnA-NJ]

Thank you @KrisD15 , but my question pertains to direct deposit of refunds to a bank account
once it is paid by the Treasury Department. It is not about debit cards, TurboCards, Green Dot
cards, etc. - which, to my understanding, work as a kind of advance loan on your refund.  I did not choose that option, I chose straight direct deposit to my bank account upon payment by the
IRS.  

As such, I would expect to not encounter any obstacles in receiving the stimulus payment as
direct deposit due to a fee payment option offered by TurboTax. Intuit would be in a very,
very, very bad position if they allow that to happen to the thousands of customers who chose this option.

[JohnB5677]

Very simply, the stimulus payment is going to the bank you designated on your most recent tax return.

If you have your tax return it is listed on page 2 of your 1040 on lines 21 b & c

It is also noted at the top of the filing Instructions.

[JohnA-NJ]

Thank you @JohnB5677 , I guess we'll have to take your word on that without any reassurance of how that will actually happen since our refunds were deposited by SBTPG, not the US Treasury.    Again, I hate to seem like a skeptical fussbudget, but the responses thus far have been less than clear.