The tax deadline is approaching and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has already delivered more than 43 million refunds to beneficiaries, totaling almost $135.3 billion. Until the beginning of March, the average refund was about $3,145 per person, above the $2,972 that had been sent until the same week of 2024, according to the IRS itself.
And well, millions of Americans are already enjoying their money with the refund that came to them from the IRS, but many more are still waiting for the check to arrive to be used at their discretion. If you are still waiting and do not know where the money is, let me tell you that there is a free tool to find out what the status of your refund.
Where’s My Refund? — Know Your Payment’s Status
The IRS’s “Where’s My Refund” tool is an online tool that allows taxpayers to track the status of their federal tax refund that is in the process of being sent. Using it is really easy, and we are going to explain it to you below.
The first thing you have to do is access the IRS website and enter the “Where’s My Refund” section, which you will see in the main menu of the site. Having your Social Security number handy, your filing status for tax purposes and the exact amount of your expected refund.
The tool will ask you to enter the aforementioned information, so that you can then click “send” when you insert it. After a few seconds, the application will return all the information about the status of your refund, including whether it has been received, processed and the estimated date of issue.
Keep in mind that the databases of the “Where’s My Refund” tool is updated by the IRS once a day, usually overnight, so it is advisable to check it after 24 hours from the time you filed your tax return, or since the last time you checked, in order to obtain updated data.
How Does the IRS Determine How Much Money to Refund Me?
How much money the IRS will refund you is determined by several factors, including the total income declared during the tax year. This includes income from work, investments, own businesses, and others. Also, the agency takes into account the amount of taxes withheld from your income throughout the year, as well as any estimated tax payments you have made.
Deductions and credits also impact the size of the refund you will receive from the IRS. This includes standard or itemized deductions, child credits, education credits, credits for caring for people who are financially dependent on you, and more.
Marital and family status is another factor determined by the IRS. If you are single, married, if you are the head of a small or large family… all this has to do with calculating your refund. The IRS also considers other factors specific to your tax situation, such as mortgage interest payments, retirement account contributions, natural disaster losses, and more.
This is why the amount of money each taxpayer receives is different each year, and it is also different from the refunds that other people receive.