Why is your tax refund delayed?

If you have filed your taxes and you expect a tax refund but haven’t yet received it, you’re not alone. Usually, the IRS issues refunds within about three weeks, but due to a variety of reasons, refunds are taking longer this year. The IRS has been overwhelmed with managing not only normal tax returns and refunds, but also unemployment payment refunds, child tax credit payments, and stimulus checks.

If you’re still waiting on your refund, here are some things you can do:

• Check online instead of over the phone. At the “Where’s My Refund?” page on the IRS website, you’ll be more likely to get an answer than over the phone. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that only about 2 of every 100 calls to the IRS is getting through. If there’s no information when you check, keep trying once a week or so, or download the IRS2Go app, which updates each night.

• Don’t throw out letters from the IRS. Talk to your tax professional if you receive a letter stating that you owe more taxes or that the IRS needs more information. If you elect to handle a request from the IRS yourself, use the phone number provided on the letter (this will get you help faster than the main number) and send any correspondence through certified mail.

• Be patient. The IRS estimates that if you submitted your tax return via mail, you could wait 6-8 weeks for a refund, whereas if you filed online, it should be sooner. But this has been a challenging year for all of us, including the IRS, so it could take longer for everyone.

• If you have yet to file, double-check your bank information. The individual tax filing deadline is May 17, so you still have a little bit of time, technically. Failing to enter your bank information correctly could delay the processing of your refund.

One way to get your refund quickly is to file as soon as possible after the end of the year. If you have questions about how to get more organized for next year’s taxes, reach out to us at info@sbfcpa.com