IRS notice CP21B: the IRS made the change you asked for and you are due a refund

What does an IRS notice CP21B mean?

CP21B is the notice the IRS mails after it changes your return at your request and the result is money back to you. The request is usually an amended return filed on Form 1040-X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. The notice lists the changes the IRS made and the refund it is sending.

A CP21B is not a bill and not an audit. The CP21 family has several versions that look alike, so check the notice number in the corner of the first page against this table before you act.

If your notice is a CP12, the IRS found the mistakes itself rather than acting on a request. Our page on the IRS CP12 notice covers that case and its deadline for disagreeing.

How long after a CP21B notice will I get my refund?

The IRS says to expect the refund within 2 to 3 weeks of the notice. That window holds only if you do not owe other federal taxes or debts the government must collect, such as past-due child support; those can be taken from the refund first through an offset.

How the money arrives depends on how you amended. The IRS pays an amended refund by direct deposit only when the Form 1040-X was e-filed with bank details for tax year 2021 or later; a paper 1040-X is refunded by check, as our page on amended return refund direct deposit explains.

If 3 weeks have passed since the notice date, you owe no other taxes or debts and nothing has arrived, the IRS says to call the number on your notice. For a check that was issued but never reached you, the trace steps on our tax refund not received page apply.

What should you do after getting a CP21B?

1. Compare each change listed on the notice with the Form 1040-X you filed.
2. If they match, you do not need to contact the IRS. Correct the copy of the return you keep, so next year's figures start from the right numbers.
3. Watch for the refund within 2 to 3 weeks of the notice date and check the amount against the notice.
4. Keep the notice with your records for that tax year, because it shows any interest included in the refund.
5. Report any interest the IRS paid you on the return for the year you receive it.

If you were tracking the amendment in Where's My Amended Return, the notice usually lines up with the tool moving to Completed. Our guide to Where's My Amended Return explains each status.

What if you disagree with a CP21B or did not ask for the change?

If you disagree with the changes, call the IRS at the number printed in the What you need to know section of the notice. If you do not remember asking for a change, call the same number to find out what the IRS received.

If you think someone else filed a return or an amended return in your name, the IRS says to call the number on the notice and use its Identity Theft Central pages. Our guide to IRS refund identity verification covers the letters that can follow.

If you find a different mistake, one the IRS did not fix, the IRS says to file another Form 1040-X. Let the first adjustment finish before you send it, so Column A of the new form can start from the figures the IRS allowed; our Form 1040-X guide shows how.

Is the interest on a CP21B refund taxable?

Yes. An amended refund often arrives long after the original due date, so the IRS may include overpayment interest. The IRS says any interest it pays must be reported on your return, and it sends Form 1099-INT by January 31 of the next year when the interest is $10 or more. Our page on whether IRS refund interest is taxable shows where it goes on Form 1040.

On your tax account transcript for the year you amended, the adjustment appears as TC 290 or TC 291, any interest as TC 776 and the refund as TC 846, after the TC 977 that records the amended return. Our amended return transcript page walks through a worked example.