topic I put the wrong bank account number in for my direct deposit how do I fix it if I have already submitted my return and it has been accepted. I already tried calling irs in After you file

I put the wrong bank account number in for my direct deposit how do I fix it if I have already submitted my return and it has been accepted. I already tried calling irs

sierragrant27 — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 12:34:02 GMT

Re: I put the wrong bank account number in for my direct deposit how do I fix it if I have already submitted my return and it has been accepted. I already tried calling irs

mesquitebean — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 12:38:05 GMT

New this year:

If the bank rejects the payment and sends it back to the IRS, then be aware of a new IRS feature that started this year. Because of a recent Executive Order, the IRS is trying to avoid issuing paper checks and phasing them out whenever possible.

Starting this year, if a bank sends the refund back to the IRS, a paper check may not automatically be sent. Instead, it's possible that the refund would be frozen up to 30 days, and the IRS may give you a chance to correct it within that 30 days by using your Online IRS account (or establishing one) to update the deposit information. The IRS may send you a letter called a CP53E notice. It may take a couple of weeks to arrive after the initial deposit was returned to the IRS.

IRS: Understanding your CP53E notice

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/understanding-your-cp53e-notice

If the update in the Online IRS Account is unsuccessful, or if you don't respond to the CP53E notice to update it, the IRS says it will ultimately issue the paper check after 6 weeks have gone by. There are FAQs about the process on that IRS page I linked above.

Re: I put the wrong bank account number in for my direct deposit how do I fix it if I have already submitted my return and it has been accepted. I already tried calling irs

mesquitebean — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 12:49:36 GMT

@ sierragrant27

ADDENDUM

The info I left above is for someone who has a routine filing and processing with the funds to go directly from the IRS to one's bank account, but where the deposit failed,

However, the funds may take a different route if you chose any options such as "pay fees out of refund" or the "up to 5 days early" option, or Refund Advance. Those options use a third-party intermediary bank that first receives the funds. If you used one of those, then if the deposit from the intermediary bank to your bank fails, it could go back to the intermediary bank who would either send you a check (most cases), or in some instances they send it back to the IRS to deal with.