Checking the status of your tax refund is as easy as 1-2-3…4-5.
First, though, you’ll need to know what your refund amount should be (as well as your Social Security Number and filing status, which hopefully you already know, but it is worth mentioning). If you don’t happen to know your exact refund amount, and yeah it does have to be exact, you’ll want to look at the tax preparation paperwork or, if necessary, contact your tax preparer. Then again, if you have a tax preparer you may just want to ask him or her to check the status of your refund. I mean, you did pay him/her for a reason right?
Nonetheless, here’s the easy way to find your tax refund status:
1. Go to www.irs.gov. Make sure it’s .gov – .com brings you to the wrong website.
2. On the left side of the screen, click on the “Where’s My Refund” link about halfway down the page.
3. A few paragraphs down the page, click on the link where it says, “Take me to Where’s My Refund?.”
4. When the page loads it will ask you to verify your Social Security Number, filing status, and refund amount.
5. Once those numbers and information are filled in, click “Submit” at the bottom right of the page.
That’s all there is to it! Who would have thought the government could create something so easy, huh? Oh wait a minute…
The next page will then show you the status of your tax refund. Hopefully all is well and your money is on its way. If not, this page will tell you what else needs to be done in order to process your return. The most common errors include transposing errors and/or numbers mismatching the IRS’s records, calculation errors, or obvious yet often overlooked errors such as claiming 1 dependent but deducting the wrong amount for your exemption credit. Like I said, hopefully you will only see a confirmation that your refund was accepted and your tax refund will be received shortly, but if not, this page usually fully explains what’s wrong with the refund and what is needed to do in order to correct it.
Of course if you still have questions regarding your return status, or if you don’t happen to have access to the internet, you can always give the IRS a call at 800-TAX-1040 (800-829-1040). While you wait for them to answer, though, you may wanna put on a pot of coffee…and maybe work on next year’s taxes…and work on solving world hunger. Yeah, you’re gonna have some free time.