Why was my refund different from the one listed on my return?

[seebt2]

I did not have money taken out to pay for my Turbo Tax software, so why is my refund different from the filed tax form?

[CassandraLO]

Missing dollar amounts may be caused by a refund offset. This is when the government applies part or all of a taxpayer's refund towards the taxpayer's past-due income tax, child or spousal support, student loans, or state unemployment compensation debts.

If this happens, you should be getting a letter from the government explaining why you didn't get the entire refund. You can also get this information by looking up your refund at the IRS Where's My Refund page.

Finally, the government may have made a correction to your tax return, resulting in a lower than anticipated refund. Again, you'll get an official explanatory letter when this happens.

Related Information:

• What is a refund offset?
• Why did the TurboTax Refund Meter change after filing?