Where's My Refund: the three stages explained

Transcript

Where's My Refund, explained

Where's My Refund is the free IRS tracker for your federal refund. It is the same data the IRS phone line reads.

Status appears about 24 hours after you e-file this year's return, and about four weeks after you mail one.

You need four things: your SSN or ITIN, filing status, tax year, and the exact whole-dollar refund amount.

Stage one, Return Received. The IRS has your return and is processing it. No refund date exists yet.

Stage two, Refund Approved. Processing is finished, the amount is confirmed, and a send date is set.

Stage three, Refund Sent. The money has left the Treasury. Direct deposits usually post within about five days.

The tracker updates once a day, usually overnight. Most e-filed refunds arrive within 21 days.