After you file

If the federal refund was Approved or Issued it would indicate that on the IRS federal tax refund status website.

 

If accepted by the IRS use the federal tax refund website to check the refund status - https://www.irs.gov/refunds

 

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.
See this IRS website for federal tax refund FAQ's - https://www.irs.gov/refunds/tax-season-refund-frequently-asked-questions