Tax refund offset: why part or all of your refund was taken
A tax refund offset means your refund paid a past-due debt. See which debts qualify, what the notice shows, who to contact and how to get money back.
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Read the full guide: Tax Refund Offset: Why Your Refund Was Taken and Next Steps
Transcript
Tax refund offset: why part or all of your refund was taken
A tax refund offset happens when the government uses some or all of your federal refund to pay a past-due debt, such as child support, a defaulted federal loan, state income tax or a state unemployment compensation debt.
Who takes the money: Bureau of the Fiscal Service, through the Treasury Offset Program (TOP).
Federal tax debts: Applied by the IRS first; explained on a CP49 notice.
Share of a tax refund that can be taken: Up to 100% for non-tax, child support and state debts.
Federal law lists the debts that can reduce an overpayment and sets the order they are paid in.
Where's My Refund follows your return through Return Received, Refund Approved and Refund Sent.
BFS mails a letter when it takes money from a payment. The IRS says the notice lists the original refund amount, the amount offset, and the agency that received the money.
Why was my refund offset? Your name and Social Security number matched a delinquent debt in the Treasury Offset Program, such as past-due child support, a defaulted federal loan or a state tax bill.
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