By Elle Martinez for GoBankingRates
While some are scrambling to get their tax forms in on time, you might be one of the many who have already filed. For you, your concerns have shifted to when you’ll receive your tax refund. And if it’s been a couple of weeks since you filed, you might be anxious if you haven’t received a check or a deposit in your account.
So, what should be your next step? Here are a number of ways you can track and obtain your tax refund in the weeks after you’ve filed.
When Will I Get My Tax Refund?
I’m happy to say that last year, we got a tax refund. We went through our taxes and saw that our estimated refund was a bit less than $3,000. However, we received our direct deposit in June, rather than a couple of weeks. Why? Like many who hadn’t received their refund as expected, our tax return had a problem processing.
A red flag went up when we didn’t receive a direct deposit of our refund within the scheduled time frame, so I went online to investigate.
Those who e-file can typically expect their refund 10 to 21 days after the IRS receives their tax returns. I went online to use the IRS’ tool Where’s My Refund? to track my refund. If you need to use the tool, the Internal Revenue Service requires the following information:
- Your filing status
- Social Security number
- Exact tax refund amount
Please note you need to wait about three days after you submit your tax return to be able to use the refund tracking tool. This service helped me see there was a problem. We didn’t have to wait long to get some insight on what happened with our tax return.
Receiving an Explanation From the IRS
I believe it was the next day when I received a letter from the IRS offering an explanation about the problem. At first, the letter seemed a bit confusing, however, using the letter’s form number, I was quickly able to see what information the IRS was requesting for us and why.
What it came down to was that my estimated tax payments for the previous year were misapplied and I just had to submit a letter explaining that the payments were supposed to be calculated for my 1040, not another tax form. Thanks to a few conversations, it was squared away and we happily received our money and allocated it toward our family’s financial goals.
For many people, they’ll get the same outcome — the IRS is either requesting documentation or an explanation to get your tax return processed. Once they receive what they need, you’ll get the refund. No need to wait and wonder, a phone call or the letter can tell you what you need to do next.
This article was originally published on GoBankingRates.com.
