The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) mentioned that the average federal tax refund is standing at $2,945 currently. Citizens who have already filed for their 2024 income taxes (for returns due in 2025) can feel at ease knowing that they will soon be receiving their refunds. Some Americans will be receiving their money as soon as next week as stated by the IRS.
What does your refund timing depend on?
Citizens must take note if what could cause delays in terms of their refunds. All filers can expect refunds 21 days after the IRS has accepted their returns. There are nevertheless several factors affecting this timeline.
Refund timing can be affected due to:
- The respective filing method used: E-filing is said to be far faster than mailing a paper return which delays refunds by weeks.
- The refund method used: Direct deposits tend to arrive more quickly than paper checks.
- Complexity of the tax returns: Tax returns that are complex and includes multiple streams of income or crypto currency assets take longer to process.
- Date of filing: Returns filed closer to the tax season deadline (April 15) tend to take longer to process due to the backlog.
One thing that citizens should note is that the IRS does not accept your return immediately once it has been submitted. Official acceptance takes more or less 24-72 hours and from thereafter the tax refund clock can begin ticking.
Understanding more about your refund status
An important thing to realize is that due to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cutting down on IRS staff and offices, the IRS may be experiencing staffing issues. These issues may also impact the processing time of refunds.
Nevertheless, the IRS seems quite on the ball. Citizens who are unsure as to when their tax refund will be arriving can rely on the IRS Where’s My Refund tool. To use this handy tool all that is needed is your Social Security Number (or ITIN), the exact amount of your refund as well as your filing status.
Another way that citizens can check their refund status is by using theIRS2Go app that provides refund updates via mobile phone. Once a citizen’s return is received and approved, and the refund is sent, the citizen will receive updates immediately.
An important thing for citizens to do if 21 days have passed and the IRS doesn’t seem to be accepting a return is for citizens to check their filing status and the accuracy of their banking details. Citizens should also keep checking their mail as the IRS will send mailed notices if additional documentation is required or even in cases when a refund needs to be reduced due to past tax debts.
Who will be receiving refunds from May 19-25?
The IRS filing season statistics for week ending April 25, 2025, show that citizens who had electronically filled their returns and the IRS had accepted their returns by May, will receive their direct deposit refund of $2,945 between May 19 and May 23. However, taxpayers who mailed their paper checks will see their tax payments arriving by May 30.
Citizens who can expect their refunds next week are:
- Citizens who e-filed their returns and selected direct deposit.
- Citizens whose tax returns were accepted by the IRS by May 5, 2025.
- Citizens who have not claimed for credits that usually delay processing like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Additional Child Tax Credit (CTC).
- Citizens who filed an accurate return with no verification issues or errors.
Citizens must keep in mind that claiming for CTC or EITC would result in delays due to the verification processes linked to claiming for these credits. Nevertheless, all citizens who had their returns accepted by May 5 and had chosen the direct deposit payment method would see a $2,945 refund in their bank accounts soon.
Citizens who still wish to track their refund should make use of the IRS Where’s My Refund tool.
