Why has turbo tax kept my money for a week?

[alishamariesmith]

The IRS told me on March 8th that my taxes were released on March 2nd and sent to you all for fees. Why is turbo tax holding my money?

[mesquitebean]

That fee-payment method is handled by a third-party company (SBTPG).   I'll leave you info below on how to check on it now at the intermediary company that handles that service.

[alishamariesmith]

Thank you

[mesquitebean]

You're welcome.  Good luck.

[mesquitebean · Accepted solution]

If you chose to pay your TurboTax fees out of your Federal refund, your funds will first go from the IRS to a temporary account at an intermediary bank--either Civista Bank of Sandusky, Ohio, or Green Dot Bank.  At the intermediary bank the fees are subtracted, then the rest of your funds are sent on to your bank (or prepaid debit card) in a second deposit.  The company that handles that is SBTPG (Santa Barbara Tax Products Group.)

Less commonly there can be delays at the intermediary bank, and additional ID info, etc. might be required.

If for any reason the second deposit fails (the one that is actually to your bank or card), it will bounce back to SBTPG's bank who will issue you a paper check in the mail.

Once the IRS has released your funds, you can log in to your temporary account at SBTPG to see the status of your funds.

To log in, choose the taxpayer portal at:
https://www.sbtpg.com/

SBTPG has a phone contact page at the following link.   Even when they are closed, you may be able to get automated info, or you can log in as above.

https://help.sbtpg.com/hc/en-us/articles/230084587-Contact-Information