For all the people
impatiently waiting
on tax refunds.

A grapevine for taxpayers,
by taxpayers.

Interact with people who have experiences or questions just like you.

All of your tax refund questions, answered.
What Other People Are Saying
49,350 comments

Where’s My Refund?

You have questions, we have answers.

key tax return and refund dates

When can you file your taxes?

You can submit your tax return before the IRS begins processing as early as the first week of the year with many tax preparation providers. You don’t need to wait until the IRS begins accepting tax returns but you must have the proper forms and paperwork. Some forms are not available until mid January. Tax returns filed before the IRS officially opens sit in a “queue” and are held until the IRS officially begins accepting tax returns.

Your tax return may be selected in a test batch. If you e-file early and it sits in queue, your return may be sent to the IRS early. This can result in early direct deposits depending on the payment provider you select. Our cycle chart will update with key dates including test batch dates.

When does the IRS accept tax returns?

The IRS usually opens around the third week of January each year. They announce the opening date early in January.

The IRS will begin accepting tax returns in 2025 on January 27th.

When is the IRS test batch?

If you file your tax return early, it may be sent to the IRS in a test batch before the IRS has officially opened for the year. It is usually a week before the date the IRS begins accepting tax returns. This has resulted in refunds in the past that can be posted by direct deposit as early as the day after tax season opens.

When will I get my tax refund?

Early filers whose returns are accepted in a test batch can anticipate a tax refund as early as the day after the IRS opens the January filing season if your return was in the test batch. The day that the IRS deposits refunds varies for regular returns but we notice trends based on the method you chose to file and select to direct deposit. You can use our tax refund calendar or refund cycle chart to help find out when you will get your tax refund.

Where is the IRS refund cycle chart?

The official tax refund cycle chart published by the IRS has been eliminated and replaced with IRS FAQ. Refund cycle charts are now published by independent websites and vary slightly.

A good reference to use is the When To Expect My Refund cycle chart that is published early each year by the College Investor.

tax refund grapevine

This is a user-to-user community of taxpayers. Share experiences and ask questions below in our Live Discussion. We have learned more about tax refunds than we ever wanted to know.

IRS Update Cycle

Use the IRS Update Cycle chart to find the days and times the WMR and transcript update.

Transcripts

This is what your IRS transcript can tell you about your tax refund.

Transaction Codes

Lookup the codes that you see on your tax return transcript and what they mean.

Daily vs. Weekly

Find out if you have a daily or weekly account with the IRS and what it means.

When are Updates?

The IRS has regular mass update cycles.

WHEN DOES WHERES MY REFUND (WMR) UPDATE?

Where’s My Refund can update any day of the week. But there are mass updates on Wednesday and Saturday when a lot of people see an update. Use our calendar to find out what day you can expect to see updates on Where’s My Refund.

WHEN DO transcripts update?

Transcripts can update any day of the week. But there are mass updates on Tuesday and Friday. Use our calendar to find out what day you can expect to see an update on your transcript.

talk to a human

It is often hard to reach someone at the IRS and you might want to talk to a person. It is hard to reach some tax preparation companies too. Use our guide to talk to a human at the IRS.

TAX TOPIC 152

Tax Topic 152 is the most common status when you check the status of your tax refund. It is nothing to worry about.

transcript codes

Transaction Codes (TC) sometimes called transcript codes consist of three digits and may appear on your IRS account transcript. Decipher the codes on your IRS transcripts.

reference codes

Most times the Wherer’s My Refund tool (WMR) will show Tax Topic 152. Other times you may see various error codes. These are called Reference Codes on the WMR.

Join the Conversation

What Others Are Saying

  1. zenji

    Filed 3/4 with TurboTax
    Accepted same day

    Bottom two transcripts updated on 3/10 but with no cycle or DDD info

    Remaining transcripts appeared this morning with 3/22 DDD

    Fingers crossed for everyone else.

    Reply
  2. TPerry

    I got a ddd of 3/22. It was after I posted earlier this morning.

    Reply
    1
  3. Cendi

    My transcript just updated, DDD for 3/22/23.. good luck to everyone this year has been a ride.

    Reply
    1
  4. Sebastian
    • Tax Preparer:
      Turbo Tax
    • Date Filed:
      Jan-17
    • Fees:
      From Refund
    • Bank:
      Charles Schwab
    • Bars:
      1st Bar
    • Date Accepted:
      Jan-19
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle:
      Weekly
    • I Got My Refund!

    as-of went from 03/13 to 03/27 back to 03/13
    no updates or anything as of 6:57 AM CST. will update if I get anything.
    Good luck to all!

    Reply
  5. Mawspaw

    Just got my 846 right now for 03/22/23. They obviously were still working on one this morning as when I checked a few minutes ago my 2022,2021,and 2020 went from being filled in to N/A. Just checked again and everything was back but this time 2022 had the 846. Hoping more get some resolution to their problems.

    Reply
    1
  6. Dallis

    @MamaHen0717: same, hopefully it all still populates today since it can happen all day today for weekly’s

    Reply
  7. Mlronq

    Still have 570/971 and never got a letter.

    Reply
    1
  8. MamaHen0717

    Just checked ALL the bases. No change whatsoever on transcripts or wmr/IRS2Go…,

    Reply
    2
  9. Mlronq.

    My transcripts stopped showing n/a on 2/17 I’m still waiting lol no further updates. Nothing today.

    Reply
  10. Kikibroke

    @Mawspaw: same here. For the first time since I filed 2/2 I no longer have NA on anything. Everything populated on transcripts except account transcript. My as of date changed. I Id verified on 3/9. Hopefully we get a date next week.

    Reply
  11. TPerry

    @CarolinaWoman88: It’s been so weird this year. I’ve never seen this before.

    Reply
  12. CarolinaWoman88

    Well I guess there is some hope this morning. All my transcripts have populated but still no expected refund date. Account Transcript mostly blank. My as of date is now 3/27 instead of 2/20. My timeline: filed and accepted 1/31 and ID verified on 3/2. Hopefully I get my check soon

    Reply
  13. TPerry

    @Cendi: same for me. No codes but when I scrolled down the refund amount shows correctly.

    Reply
  14. Cendi

    Okay, so everything populated last night as far as return transcript and record of account transcript. However, my account transcript did not. My as of date is still 2/20 and no codes.

    Reply
  15. Annie Fo Fanny

    This year is weird. I filed 3/7. My transcripts just updated and says “tentative refund”. Lol what the heck is happening? This is the first year I’ve claimed my daughter as an adult dependent and she is a college freshman so I’m afraid I screwed up with her education credits.

    Reply
  16. Sebastian
    • Tax Preparer:
      Turbo Tax
    • Date Filed:
      Jan-17
    • Fees:
      From Refund
    • Bank:
      Charles Schwab
    • Bars:
      1st Bar
    • Date Accepted:
      Jan-19
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle:
      Weekly
    • I Got My Refund!

    Only thing that has updated so far is my as-of date from 03/13 to 03/27.

    Reply
  17. Mawspaw

    Filed 2/20/22 no tax credits except for what I paid in. My WMR went from one bar and is processing to no bars and still processing. The other day the messaging changed back to processing without the still. Now my top transcripts just started filling in this morning after 3am hoping they will be all the way filled in later today. Either way it’s movement. I’m weekly and have been weekly forever it seems like.

    Reply
    2
  18. 570 Go Away

    @NVDIV: it’s out of control for us. I told myself I won’t file in January again but I waited until they started accepting returns. Then I see others who filed in February get the same 570 anyhow. I think there are just massive issues this year for some dumb reason and we all get to suffer for it.

    Reply
  19. Sebastian
    • Tax Preparer:
      Turbo Tax
    • Date Filed:
      Jan-17
    • Fees:
      From Refund
    • Bank:
      Charles Schwab
    • Bars:
      1st Bar
    • Date Accepted:
      Jan-19
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle:
      Weekly
    • I Got My Refund!

    @TPerry: They update starting at 3AM EST

    Reply
  20. TPerry

    What time do transcripts normally update?

    Reply
  21. Nikki O

    @Sheila_33: makes sense, thank you for responding. Fingers crossed for tomorrows update

    Reply
  22. TPerry

    Hope to get some updates tonight. I was accepted on 3/2 and have had N/A on my top two transcripts since then.

    Reply
  23. CarolinaWoman88

    @Shanshan: thanks I’m going to try and remember to call tomorrow before I go to work. It keep slipping my mind.

    Reply
  24. Luna

    What does it mean when it says under code of explanation of transaction
    “No tax return filed”

    Reply
  25. BBkansas24
    • Tax Preparer:
      Turbo Tax
    • Date Filed:
      Feb-22
    • Fees:
      From Refund
    • Bank:
      City national bank and trust
    • Bars:
      1st Bar
    • Date Accepted:
      Feb-26
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle Code:
      20231105
    • Cycle:
      Weekly
    • As of:
      Apr-3
    • I Got My Refund!

    I don’t what to do

    So I called the hardship number, the lady was super nice to me

    She was able to tell me why I was received the 4464c letter.

    That my federal withholding didn’t match my w-2s

    Now I’ve read It needs to be processed before amending…..

    Or the IRS well fix it without the amend…..

    Thing is my transcripts WMR doesn’t show anything. I would like to get it correct because I know what it is they need….

    My question to you guys , would you amend ? Or wait ?

    Also going through the amend process with TT they say I owe but how ? I never got a refund and the chat help is saying If it’s gray I owe. I can’t even see my transcripts. SMH this is a mess. I just want to fix this

    Reply
  26. Sharon. O

    @ConfusedMainer: Did you have any 570 code or any codes on your transcripts? Also did you receive any letters

    Reply
  27. ConfusedMainer

    “Your return has been changed; no refund will be mailed to you. You should receive an explanation of these changes within the next 3 weeks. If you do not receive an explanation within that time, you may call our taxpayer assistance line at (207) 624-9784.”

    No idea. I went through a tax professional and should be receiving a nice refund, so I’m kinda concerned but not sure if I should be? I will follow up with the general issue here once I find out because I see it a number of times without any real follow ups.

    Reply
  28. Chop

    @One annoyed chica.: don’t believe a thing they tell you that is a generic message they tell everyone my sister got the freeze code and she already received her taxes they are telling people anything I have the freeze code as well with a date of 03/09/2023 my husband has that same date and code don’t believe them my cousin has the same dat and code and two of my close friends .. Lmaoo it’s crazy

    Reply
  29. MamaHen0717

    Today makes 33 days since I exiled our tax return. We had absolutely no movement past “accepted” until 3/3/23. Then we got the tax topic 152 and our refund amount on wmr/IRS2Go. On 2/28/23 our as of dates were 3/7/23. On 3/7/23 our transcripts began to fill, until then we had N/A our as of dates changed to 3/20/23, processing date 3/20/23, 570 3/20/23, 971 3/27/23. My SSA updated with income info last week, our tax transcript still has no income info.
    We have 20230905 as a cycle code…. I stalk our transcripts and watch wmr daily… When calling the IRS I am told to be patient, TA said that there was nothing to do at this time, wait and if no update this week wait for the letter dated 3/27/23 and do what it says, it may say to do nothing and if so do nothing. I filed 2/13 and was told my time starts from 3/2 when we hit the master file.. not from my filing date. So according to the rep I spoke with our 21 day marker is 3/23! HOW? I asked. How is it that we filed 2/13 but you are telling me the date our 21 days starts from is the master file date… I never knew this? I have been filing taxes every February for 25 years now… My frustration is starting to get the best of me.

    Reply
  30. Sheila_33
    • Tax Preparer:
      FreeTaxUSA
    • Date Filed:
      Jan-9
    • Fees:
      Free
    • Bank:
      Bluebird
    • Bars:
      No Bars-PATH Act Message
    • Date Accepted:
      Jan-17
    • Date Approved:
      Feb-16
    • WMR Date:
      Feb-16
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle Code:
      04
    • Cycle:
      Daily
    • As of:
      Feb-10
    • Processing Date:
      Feb-19
    • I Got My Refund!

    @Nikki O: It means the system has stopped trying to resolve and now someone manually has to get it back into processing.

    Reply
  31. Sheila_33
    • Tax Preparer:
      FreeTaxUSA
    • Date Filed:
      Jan-9
    • Fees:
      Free
    • Bank:
      Bluebird
    • Bars:
      No Bars-PATH Act Message
    • Date Accepted:
      Jan-17
    • Date Approved:
      Feb-16
    • WMR Date:
      Feb-16
    • Transcript:
      Online
    • Cycle Code:
      04
    • Cycle:
      Daily
    • As of:
      Feb-10
    • Processing Date:
      Feb-19
    • I Got My Refund!

    It can be a positive if the w2s are showing on the SSA site since if the IRS is reviewing income from your return, they can reconcile with what the employer has sent directly to SSA.

    Reply
  32. Di

    @NVDIV: wow!woe!! It’s just a freaking game

    Reply
    1
  33. MOE

    Since I got my letter and said just to wait will I update tomorrow at all

    Reply
  34. Shanshan

    @CarolinaWoman88: You probably have to call I did mine online to in then when I called it was on hold cause it didn’t get transferred to them even tho the page said complete.
    Now I’m waiting on a check.

    Reply
  35. TPerry

    @MOE: I saw your update. This waiting game is a mess.

    Reply
    2
  36. NVDIV

    @Meme: mine has been reported into my SSA at least a month now.. and nothing

    Reply
  37. MEohmy

    Where is my INTEREST on delayed refund

    Filed tax year 2021 on Feb 2 22, Accepted Feb 25. Refund issued Oct 26 2022.

    Per IRS I should be paid interest after July 15

    Reply
    1
  38. Bri

    I filed 2/2/23 and haven’t gotten anything yet and WMR says it’s been delayed. Does anyone know why this is happening or when the latest date I can get it?

    Reply
  39. KeiaG34

    Anyone know what it means to be resequenced and how long that takes ?

    Reply
  40. Meme

    Has anyone checked their wage reporting on ssa website? How long before you get your tax refund after they have reported your wages to ssa? Still showing 570 $0 date 03/20/23. Im so lost, don’t even know what to expect anymore. No update last night or this morning for me….again.

    Reply