CassandraLO
Intuit Alumni

After you file

The TurboTax Refund Tracker  projects an estimated date range on when you can expect your refund. This estimated date is based on other TurboTax customers who have already received their refunds. Once the tax return is accepted by the IRS, they do not send updates to TurboTax.

For the most up-to-date information regarding the status of your tax return and a specific date of when to expect your refund, please visit the IRS Where's My Refund? site. 

If your return was accepted less than 21 days ago, hang in there. It can take anywhere from a few days to 3 weeks to go from acceptance to approval. 

Here is the general timeline of e-filed returns:

Transmission > Acceptance > Processing > Approval > Refund.

Even though the IRS issues 9 out of 10 tax refunds within 21 days, it's possible your return may require additional review and take longer to process.

For some taxpayers, PATH Act requirements and other identity-protection safeguards implemented by the IRS may account for longer wait times.

Other things that can delay your refund include but are not limited to:

  • Liens, back taxes, or refund offsets;
  • Errors, inconsistencies, or missing information;
  • Identity fraud;
  • Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation, which can take 11-14 weeks to process.

Also, if you chose direct deposit, your financial institution may need another day or two to post the refund to your account, so keep that in mind.