Refunds

What You Need to Know

• Expecting a refund? Some 2016 year filing Refunds must be held by IRS until Feb. 15

• According to a new tax law change, the IRS cannot issue refunds before Feb. 15 for tax returns that claim the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit.

• This applies to the entire refund, even the portion not associated with these credits.

• Though the IRS issues more than nine out 10 refunds in less than 21 days, some returns are held for further review.

What You Need to Do

• Be careful not to count on getting a refund by a certain date, especially when making major purchases or paying other financial obligations.

• You don’t need to wait until Feb. 15 to file your tax return. While the IRS must hold the refund until Feb. 15, it will begin taking the steps it normally does to process your tax return once the filing season starts.

• File a complete and accurate return and include all known refundable credits with your original return.

• Check Where’s My Refund on IRS.gov or the IRS mobile app, IRS2Go, after February 15 for your personalized refund status.