IRS Where’s My Refund

Expecting a tax return this year? Here is how you can track the status of your federal income tax return by using the IRS’ Where’s My Refund tool.

Scroll down to the bottom of the page to track down your tax refund status without leaving the site.

If you withheld more tax than your total tax bill throughout 2024, you are going to receive a tax refund. You can use the Where’s My Refund tool from the IRS website to see the status of your refund. The tool details when your refund has been processed, issued, and mailed to your address.

Before you get to IRS for tracking the status of your refund, there are a couple of things you should know beforehand.

First and foremost, the system is updated once a day and the update occurs at midnight. So checking in with Where’s My Refund once a day should be more than enough.

How to check your refund status?

Upon reaching the IRS website for refunds which can be found at irs.gov/refunds, click on Check My Refund Status. After waiting for a short time, a page will appear which you’ll need to fill out to see the process of your refund.

You’ll need to know

• Your exact refund amount found on Form 1040
• Your filing status
• Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number

Now that you completed this page, click on Submit and you’ll see the process of your tax refund.

When will my refund come in 2024?

The Internal Revenue Service usually issues tax refunds within 21 days after you file your tax return. That’s of course if there are no errors on your tax return. Any missing information or corrections that you need to make will delay when your tax refund will be issued.

To correct your tax return, use the IRS Form 1040X (Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return).

Also, filing your tax return by mail can set you back more than a month since everything has to be processed by an IRS worker. So to receive your refund as soon as possible, you should always file your taxes electronically.

Tax Refund Amount Calculator

Here is a simple explanation of how your tax refund is calculated.

Under federal law, all employees and employers are required to pay their taxes gradually throughout the year. So if you withheld more tax than your total tax bill, you’ll receive a refund.

IRS Form W-4 is the form that employees complete to allow their employers to withhold tax. It can also be used to determine how much tax you want to withhold each pay period.

Example 1.

Let’s assume Sam’s total tax bill is $10,000 for his income earned in 2023. From his paychecks, he withheld about $13,000 and the money was forwarded to the IRS by his employer. This means

Sam’s tax refund = his tax bill ($10,000) – total taxes withheld ($13,000) = -$3,000

So while Sam’s tax bill is taken care of with his tax withholdings. Now the IRS owes Sam $3,000 for his 2024 taxes. The calculation of tax refunds is as simple as that.