There are several reasons why your refund may not match the Where's My Refund? tool.
- The first reason would be that the refund is subject to an offset. The IRS Where's my Refund tool may show that your federal tax refund was offset for a past due obligation. However, the listed balance of your refund may not take into account all offsets your tax return has accrued. If this is the case, the refund you received may be lower than the balance of your refund shown through the IRS "Where's my Refund" tool
- The IRS adjusted something on your return. If this is the case, the IRS will send you a notice in about two weeks indicting the reason for the adjustment.
- Did you use the File & Go option? When you elect to have the tax program fees deducted from your refund, the refund is sent in its full amount to the third-party bank. The third-party bank then deducts the program fees and their convenience fee before depositing the remaining refund into your bank account.
What happens if my refund is reduced?
If your refund is reduced due to an offset, you will receive a letter from the Treasury Offset Department of the Bureau of Fiscal Services detailing the reason for your offset. You may additionally contact the Bureau of Fiscal Services by calling 800-304-3107 if you have questions regarding your offset.
If the refund was adjusted for any other reason, you will still receive a notice. Page 1 of the notice generally indicates the reason for the adjustment. We have some helpful articles to assist you with determining the reason for the adjustment.
IRS says my refund was deposited but it is not in my account
If the IRS website shows the refund was sent to your bank but you have not received your refund, take the following steps:
- Check with your bank to determine if your refund has been received
- Verify the routing and bank account numbers on your accepted return are correct
- If you had the tax program fees deducted from your refund, contact Santa Barbara Tax Products Group