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.

Your federal refund can take longer than 21 days to process for the following reasons:

• You claimed an Earned Income Tax Credit and/or an Additional Child Tax Credit and filed before February 15, 2018.  It takes until the week of February 27 to receive your refund at the earliest.
• The IRS processed a refund offset.
• There were errors, inconsistencies, or missing info on the return.
• The return is under review.
• The IRS suspects identity theft or fraud.
• There's a Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation on your return.  It takes 11-14 weeks to process.
• You filed Form 1040-X (Amended Return), which can take 12-16 weeks to process.

IRS representatives can only research your refund if it’s been at least 21 days since you e-filed, at least 6 weeks since you mailed your return, or if their Where’s My Refund? lookup tool tells you to contact them.

If Where's My Refund? says your return has been received but your refund has not yet been approved, that means the IRS has your return and is actively working on it. If the status is “Refund Sent”, the IRS has sent your tax refund to your financial institution for direct deposit. It can take 1 to 5 days for your financial institution to deposit funds into your account. If you requested that your tax refund be mailed, it could take several weeks for your check to arrive.

Please see below for more details.

• Why is my IRS refund taking more than 21 days?
• Why do some refunds take longer than others?
• When will I get my IRS tax refund?