Deductions & credits

Did you have any taxes on Line 16 of your Form 1040?  As explained by lenaH above, you would only get a refund if the credit exceeded all or some of your income taxes due.  If the credit did not exist, you might have owed taxes when filing your tax return.  But instead, the credit was used to offset your total tax liability.

Please see the screen shot below.  If the total amount on line 16 is close to the amount on line 33, you would only be refunded the difference between these values.

If the IRS did make any adjustments, you will receive a notice from them to let you know any adjustments were made.  They will contact you by mailing you a notice of adjustment, if applicable.