2024 IRS Tax Refund Schedule And Direct Deposit Payment Calendar

By all reports tax return processing and refund payments for the 2024 tax season are going much smoother thanks to IRS investments in technology and no new stimulus payments or tax credits to administer. However further security controls and PATH act restrictions (see below) could delay potential refund payments for some filers.

When Can I Expect My Tax Refund in 2024?

According to the IRS refunds will generally be paid within 21 days. This includes accepting, processing and disbursing approved refund payments via direct deposit or check. This is regular days, not business days.

This was the basis for the estimated 2024 IRS refund schedule/calendar shown below, which has been updated to reflect the Jan 29th, 2024 start date of IRS tax return processing this year.

The refund processing schedule is organized by IRS’ WMR/IRS2Go processing status‘. The listed dates are just week ending estimates and your refund could be paid anytime during the week based on your IRS cycle code (see more on that in sections below).

Further, as many tax filers have found out over the last few years, actual refund payment dates could be much longer if your return is pulled for mandated PATH, additional identity fraud/security checks, special handling or manual agency reviews.

The estimated IRS refund payment dates in the chart above should not be construed as official IRS payment dates. To get the exact date of your refund payment check the IRS’ Where is My Refund (WMR) site or your IRS transcript.

How to read the IRS refund processing schedule

The estimated refund payment dates in the table above are based on past years and IRS processing guidelines. It shows the date your refund will be processed and paid based on the week your return is accepted and refund is approved by the IRS.

The federal IRS refund processing schedule is only for electronically filed returns (e-file) done thorough online tax software providers and assumes your tax return was in order. I.e accepted by the IRS via the WMR tool and status is equal to “Return Received”.

Once your tax return is successfully processed by the IRS, it will go to the “Refund Approved” status, after which it goes to refund sent when the payment is disbursed by the IRS.

Paper filed returns can take considerably longer and could take 1 to 2 weeks longer than the direct deposit payment dates.

Average IRS Refund

Based on the latest statistics from the 2023 tax year the IRS processed over 160 million returns with the average refund payment being $3,089. This was 5% lower than the prior year.

Why Your Refund Payment Could be Delayed

There are many reasons your tax return processing could be delayed beyond what is shown in the standard schedule above. This includes submission errors, IRS reconciliation issues or security/fraud related issues.

Note that as in previous years, if you claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) your refund may have been delayed beyond the standard processing times due to the PATH act provisions.

This is to allow for fraud and dependent verification on these dependent related tax credits. See sections below for more on the PATH act and refund release timeline.

For those experiencing ongoing issues or delays with their refunds check out this article on “Why is it taking so long to get my refund.”

IRS Test Batches – Early Refunds

A week or two prior to the IRS officially accepting and processing tax returns, they will often run several test batches with various major tax software providers to “test” and “verify” their systems are integrating externally and processing returns correctly.

This will result in WMR status updates for a small subset of tax payers picked in these early test batches, but refunds won’t be paid until after the official IRS processing date.

Note that early refunds paid as a result of test batch processing are not the same as those via refund advance loans.

When Should Taxpayers contact the IRS?

The IRS has said that phone and walk-in representatives can only research the status of your refund if it has been 21 days or more since you filed electronically, or more than 6 weeks since you mailed your paper return or if the IRS WMR tool directs you to contact them.

You can also see earlier updates from prior tax seasons and the thousands of comments below this article around dealing with delayed tax refund processing issues!

So stay tuned and subscribe to get the latest updates and helpful articles for the upcoming tax season. I also post regular Youtube video updates on tax related topics.

Help! My WMR status bar has disappeared

As many folks have commented, the WMR tracker status bar may disappear or not be shown if your return falls under IRS review after it is received (Status Bar 1: Return Received) because additional information is needed for your return.

This can happen even if you previously checked WMR and it showed the status as “Return Received.” An explanation or instructions will be provided depending on the situation (e.g. PATH message or Tax Topic 152 as discussed below)

But don’t panic when this happens. The IRS still has your return but things are essentially on hold until the IRS gets the additional information from you to continue processing your return . You will either get directions on WMR or IRS2Go or the IRS will contact you by mail. See more in this video.

Follow the provided instructions and return any additional information ASAP to get your potential refund and reduce any further delays. Talk to your accountant, tax advocate or tax professional if you are not clear on what the IRS is asking for or you don’t get an update after 21 days.

PATH Act and Tax Topic 152

Two of the most common refund related messages showing up on the WMR tool after your tax return is submitted are the PATH message and to Refer to Tax Topic 152.

The PATH message on WMR/IRS2Go relates to the the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act (PATH Act of 2015) and is to notify you that the IRS is legally required to hold and further verify tax returns that include EITC or ACTC.

While the IRS can continue to process affected returns, they cannot issue refund payments until the PATH act lifts. This generally happens from mid-February. See more in this article on PATH act processing for the current tax season.

The PATH message does not mean your tax return is done and your tax refund is approved. It simply means the IRS systems have identified you are claiming the (EITC) or the (ACTC) on your tax return, and so further processing and payments related to your refund are held up for the statutory hold period (3 weeks after the start of tax season).

Once the PATH restriction is lifted, the IRS will process these returns and pay refunds per the above schedule. You may see Tax code 570 with a Notice 971 code (IRS review adjustment) if your refund is adjusted for other reasons.

When you see the “Refer to Tax Topic 152“ message it means your refund is being processed and the IRS is directing you its generic refund page for more information. There is not much you can do but wait to see if the IRS finds any issues or requires further verification of your identity or items in your tax return.

A Tax Topic 151 message simply means that you’re getting a tax offset which may result in your refund being less than you expected. The reason for this is that the federal government has “offset” or deducted monies from your tax refund to cover debts you owe other federal agencies. See this article to get more details on why your refund was offset.

You will get an official notice letter/report explaining the actual offset and adjustments to your tax return, and details on how to appeal this action – but likely it will delay you getting your refund.

While not great news, the silver lining here is that the IRS has processed your return and your adjusted refund (where applicable) should be on its way. You will see code 846 on your transcript when the refund has been issued.

What is the IRS Cycle Code on my Transcript?

While the above IRS refund schedule can give you an estimated date for you refund once approved (WMR/IRS2Go status) by the IRS, it may take a while to get there.

So some folks use their IRS tax transcript (free from your IRS account) which shows various tax processing codes and a “cycle code.” This is an eight digit number that indicates when your tax return posted to the IRS Master File (IMF).

The cycle code is updated regularly and when combined with the tax topic code, can provide insight into your tax refund status, processing stages and potential direct deposit date. You can see a deeper discussion on IRS cycle codes in this article.

If I can see current year processing details on my IRS tax transcript does it mean I am getting my refund soon?

This question comes up a lot and I have seen a few comments on this suggesting that that if you can see current tax season processing details on your (free) transcript then your refund is on the way. But this is not a factual statement.

The IRS is very clear that just being able to see processing details on your IRS transcript does not mean you will imminently be getting a refund and is among the common myths and misconceptions repeated in social media.

For the current tax season you transcript will update several times in line with your cycle code (discussed above) and IRS processing. The official IRS line is that checking the WMR or IRS2Go tool is the best and official way to check your refund status.

However I have read a number of comments here and on other tax sites saying that when WMR/IRS2Go provides limited information on the refund, your IRS transcript can be a good source to get more details. The is especially the case if your refund processing has been stuck for a while.

IRS system issues and refund delays

Every year the IRS has issues with processing returns in a timely manner and so a number of people see delays in getting their refunds or updates in the status of their refund on the WMR tool/app.

The IRS has said most system processing issues have now been resolved and new funding will be used to upgrade systems.

But given the various legacy systems in place and sheer volume of processing to be done, including prior season backlogs of paper and amended returns, I would not be surprised to see system issues arise again this year, which mean more delays in processing and paying refunds. See more around processing delays in this video.

See these articles for average refund amounts in past tax seasons and refund processing times by state

Amended Tax Return Refund Schedule

While the IRS promises to have regular return refunds processed within 21 days for nine out of ten tax payers, it does take quite a bit longer to receive a refund if you amended your tax return.

Generally you will have to wait up to 16 weeks more for the IRS to process amended returns since they prioritize regular returns. Also note that the standard”Where’s my refund” service from the IRS does not track amended tax return status’. You need to instead use the IRS tool, “Where’s My Amended Return.”

You can also access the tool via phone by calling 1-866-464-2050. Only call the IRS to follow up on delayed amended return refunds after 12 weeks. The number to call is 1-800-829-1040.

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4,006 thoughts on “2024 IRS Tax Refund Schedule And Direct Deposit Payment Calendar”

We filed electronically on Jan. 28th, was excepted Jan. 29th, waited 5 weeks and we received a letter saying because of identity theft problems we had to answer some questions, after we did that now they are saying another 9 weeks, this crap needs to stop, thy received an extra 90 Billion dollars for what? To become even more inefficient! It is obvious that the government no longer believes it works for us, they now believe they are our masters, and they will do what they please with our money! Reply

I mailed my return with certified mail and got that confirmation but “where’s my refund” says they have nothing. I signed up ID me on IRS website and it says “not processed”. I don’t even know if they really got it at this point. Yea we need help with our refunds and status. Reply

Exactly,got my state but not federal.Mailed both same day and time.Checked online and said never received for federal.verifed my ID.me with a live person via video call.This is nonsense,since the beginning of this pandemic our government sucks. Reply

There’s a 6-month backlog of “paper returns” message that now displays when visiting the irs app or website. Reply

Been waiting since January last year it’s January 16th and still waiting what’s going on still says being processed on wmr this is crazy

Have you checked to make sure your refund wasn’t offset? That happened to me one year. I was waiting, waiting, waiting, and then called this number to check if I had an offset. And yep, my whole refund was taken by the government for my student loans Reply

Hello All
Going through the same thing. Filed March 4th accepted, processing as of March 11,
given the date of March 25 to direct deposit One day I went on to check status and it changed to “sorry for the delay” code152 Nothing since, it has been about six weeks. I;ve seen not just a few, but a ton of people get their returns in 21 days exactly or sooner. All of my co workers, family and neighbors, I have done nothing different and made no major life changes on my filing status. This has never happened to me. Its awful for some whom depend on it to get caught up on bills, vacay for kids promised, single moms. I too am a single mom. I signed new lease paperwork for a better place for me and my daughter (22) college student and works. Guess what? we are supposed to move in April15. this weekend. Its a beautiful place affordable in this market and safe. A hard to come by unit. I will probably loose because of my 2000.00 security deposit, I was depending on that money. My money that I overpaid and they owe me. Some one please let me know if you or someone you know gets that code and finds a solution or get their money and how long it took. Unbelievable. Reply

Have you checked to make sure your refund wasn’t offset? That happened to me one year. I was waiting, waiting, waiting, and then called this number to check if I had an offset. And yep, my whole refund was taken by the government for my student loans Reply

My refund was filled 2/1/2022 accepted around that date. They refunded me my state real quickly direct deposit to my account, it is March the 18, and I still waiting on my federal. This is the first ever for mine to take this long to be refunded. I have received two letters from IRS stating they are holding it. And I checked my status daily it keeps saying same thing, process is passed the timeframe and I have topic 152. What I dislike is they don’t tell you no farther information. It states call number too for questions, but through phone nothing. This year big mess. With IRS holding refunds and processing. Reply

It really seems to be a lot better this year rather than last. 2019-2020/ 2020-2021. It took me ummm I filed 2/14/2021 received and accepted same day 2/14/21, approved 3/2/2021 Didn’t receive until 10/28/21 I’d never been so frustrated in my entire life. I’ve e-filed same tax place, same dependents, same job, same everything 10+ years. To begin with I had to print and send through snail mail because I was rejected (for code 507) meaning my dependent had already been claimed. Very frustrating. Come to find out after everything (months n months) with IRS that too was false, just a glitch in their system after the wait of 8 months. Now again this year it’s happened again, sad thing about all of this is that there is absolutely nothing we can do but sit and wait “patiently”. Congress really should have to do something considering its millions of people going through similar situations not just hundreds or even thousands, that we indeed should not have to be dealing with this and being taxpayers. I’m now fixing to have to deal with this all over again with these people is the way it seems. What is the most frustrating is not being able to reach out and call unless being on hold 5+ hours and that’s even if you’re lucky. Which WORKING TAXPAYER HAS THAT KIND OF TIME? NOBODY! Only the ones receiving free stimulus checks for their “DEPENDENTS” right. Definitely not me working 12 hour shifts 6 days a week!! Filed 1/26/22 and what do you know REJECTED CODE 507. Coincidence?? Definitely Not!! The thing that frustrates me the most is that folks that don’t have to work and the government pays everything for them Medicaid, food Stamps, section 8, now stimulus payments with unemployment and have never worked and have lots of children, aka “Dependents”, make 10x’s off better than someone that has to stay working. I’m the individual that barley makes ends meet and beg for a weekend off work to spend time with my kids. I’m stage 3 cancer with types of cancer and can’t even get a decent insurance because I work. Rent and bills buy kids food and few items they need gas for car then broke. Barley affords car insurance; this is really disturbing to me. We as the people really have to stand up and speak out or it’s going to keep getting worse. Now most IRS workers are working from home but literally doing nothing but still getting them paychecks. Like this can’t get made up. Make it make sense, right?! I’m definitely keeping us all in prayer because we are going to need it and this tax season started only a couple months ago. Jesus Take the wheel!! Good Luck Everyone!! Reply

Your story is so heartbreaking, and I wish it was within my power to make it better for you. These types of situations always happens to people who work hard to try to provide for their family with no special handouts. After all year of trying to stay above poverty, then you are faced with the IRS delaying your refunds and giving you vague information when you log in. The IRS is a bully agent and is ran by all things evil on this earth. Reply

Your story is so heartbreaking, and I wish it was within my power to make it better for you. These types of situations always happens to people who work hard to try to provide for their family with no special handouts. After all year of trying to stay above poverty, then you are faced with the IRS delaying your refunds and giving you vague information when you log in. The IRS is a bully agent and is ran by all things evil on this earth. Reply

If only we could penalize the IRS for late and wrong filings and refunds. They penalize us every chance they get. And the penalty is daily?? I would send them a bill with the tax amount WITH the Penalty they charge us if it is our fault. Work up an invoice to send to them! We all should do that. Just A Valid Suggestion In My Opinion!! Reply

Have you checked to make sure your refund wasn’t offset? That happened to me one year. I was waiting, waiting, waiting, and then called this number to check if I had an offset. And yep, my whole refund was taken by the government for my student loans. Reply

Lord knows that I have been through this exact situation. I’m there with you now, just don’t have any children. Single just received my second diagnosis of cancer on February 27th and on that exact day my employer of 5 years terminated me because of it!! I had just recently separated from my husband and moved to a small town home where my rent is 1500 a month and now I have crazy medical expenses that I’m going to have to pay for. I filed my taxes on Feb 1st and received a letter stating that it was being reviewed for Fraud, just to make sure I was the one who filed it. It stated if I was I didn’t need to do anything else but scan my dl and face on ID me. So I did. My return date was feb 22 and now it’s March 14 and I still have nothing. My status has not updated from received! I sent the form 911 for the tax advocate to help me because I was in hardship and they haven’t even bothered to reply back. I live in a small town in WNC where there’s not many resources for help and I have no family left. I’m jobless, alone, almost broke, and by April 1st will be homeless because I can’t afford the rent or to buy groceries now. Not to mention my treatments… and they wonder why suicide rates are so high in the United States! Reply