It’s frustrating, I know. You want your money back from the IRS. After all the IRS demands their money on one specific date each year and if you don’t pay they charge you penalties and interest. If only you could do the same. Instead you have to sit back (try to relax) and wait. The good news is there are some easy ways to check on the status of your refund.
First go to Where’s My Refund? This IRS web page has the most up to date information available about your refund. You can use it to get your personalized refund status. It’s updated once a day so no need to waste your time checking every hour. You should wait 24 hours after your or your tax preparer receives confirmation that your return was accepted by the IRS. If you paper filed, sorry, but you have to wait at least 4 weeks for your info to show up. Make sure to have your tax return information ready because you’ll need to input your social security number, filing status, and the exact whole dollar of your current year’s refund.
If you really want to talk to an agent (I wouldn’t recommend this) you can call the refund hotline. The number is 1-800-829-1954. Again make sure you have your tax return information. Unless your Where’s My Refund tool tells you to call I wouldn’t as the agent probably won’t be able to give you any more info than what’s online.
If you filed an amended return there is a separate link. Where’s My Amended Return? Just follow the instructions and input the required information from your tax return.
Both of these tools will provide you will the progress of your tax return. These are:
Return Received
Refund Approved
Refund Sent
Refund for e-filed returns generally process within 21 days of the acceptance date. Refunds from mailed returns take anywhere from 6-8 weeks to process from the date the IRS receives the return. Refunds for amended returns can take up to 16 weeks to process. These are just general rules so don’t worry if the 21 days are up and you haven’t received your return. Use the tool listed above to check the status. Sometimes the IRS gets bogged down during busy times of the year.
Minnesota Tax Return Refunds
If you are just waiting on your Minnesota state tax return you can also check the status of this. Go to the Minnesota State Tax Website to do this - https://www.mndor.state.mn.us/tp/refund/_/
You’ll need similar information just like the Federal Refund Checker. Using this tool you can check any return filed within the past 12 months. In general you should receive your refund within 90 days of filing a paper return and 15 business days for e-filed returns. Again, this is a general rule so don’t panic if you still haven’t received your refund. I have seen Minnesota state refunds take much longer to process
You can also call our automated tax service line at 651-296-4444 (Metro) or 1-800-657-3676 (Greater Minnesota). If you have not received your refund and:it has been over 15 days since your electronic return was accepted or more than 90 days since you mailed your paper return, AND neither the online system nor the automated line has any information on your return, then you can call our individual income tax help line at 651-296-3781 (Metro) or 1-800-652-9094 (Greater Minnesota), Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. and Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.