Error in direct deposit info on US 1040 return
April 13, 2022 12:22 PM Subscribe
I filed my US federal tax return (on paper) a little over a month ago. I was due a refund via direct deposit, but I have not yet received it. Looking over my copy of the return, I noticed that I indicated the wrong type of account (savings vs. checking) when I filled out the direct deposit information. Is this worth trying to correct? If so, how? Or will it get sorted out eventually?
I did get my state refund quite promptly. But if the answer is "you wouldn't expect to have received your federal refund by now, be patient", then that's a valid answer as well.
(And yes I'm aware that e-filing leads to quicker refunds I kind of like the ritual of doing the paper returns OK?)
I did get my state refund quite promptly. But if the answer is "you wouldn't expect to have received your federal refund by now, be patient", then that's a valid answer as well.
(And yes I'm aware that e-filing leads to quicker refunds I kind of like the ritual of doing the paper returns OK?)
A refund from paper filing is going to take longer than month, especially if it was done in March instead of February. I doubt you would have much luck changing it now anyway since their phone lines are very busy. If the deposit fails, they should send you a check, but that will take some extra time as well. I'd keep checking every two weeks or so using the tool muddgirl linked to. You will probably have better luck calling the IRS in May or June if things are still not resolved.
You might try asking your bank how they handle this kind of error on their end, because at least they are likely to have people available right now to answer the phone.
posted by soelo at 12:46 PM on April 13, 2022
You might try asking your bank how they handle this kind of error on their end, because at least they are likely to have people available right now to answer the phone.
posted by soelo at 12:46 PM on April 13, 2022
Regarding the savings vs. checking issue: You might get some peace of mind by contacting your bank and asking what happens on their end when they receive an IRS refund with the wrong account type. I'm sure you're not the first. Do they outright reject it and let the IRS sort it out? Do they accept it, hold it, and contact you? Do they notice the discrepancy, correct the account type themselves, and deposit it?
It may even be (although I doubt it) that notifying them of the problem ahead of time will let them anticipate the problem and preemptively take corrective action.
posted by davcoo at 12:49 PM on April 13, 2022
It may even be (although I doubt it) that notifying them of the problem ahead of time will let them anticipate the problem and preemptively take corrective action.
posted by davcoo at 12:49 PM on April 13, 2022
Yes, to second others, it’ll go like this:
1. Return finishes processing (agreed you’ll be waiting.)
2. IRS tries to ACH. Bank may just automatically accept it if the routing and account numbers match your checking.
3. If it doesn’t automatically process, the bank may manually adjust it. This is where a note on your account may help.
4. The bank may reject the transfer. If that happens, the IRS will send you a check.
Contact your bank to find out if it’ll be 2, 3 or 4 and if you can do anything now to make it go smoothly.
posted by michaelh at 12:51 PM on April 13, 2022 [2 favorites]
1. Return finishes processing (agreed you’ll be waiting.)
2. IRS tries to ACH. Bank may just automatically accept it if the routing and account numbers match your checking.
3. If it doesn’t automatically process, the bank may manually adjust it. This is where a note on your account may help.
4. The bank may reject the transfer. If that happens, the IRS will send you a check.
Contact your bank to find out if it’ll be 2, 3 or 4 and if you can do anything now to make it go smoothly.
posted by michaelh at 12:51 PM on April 13, 2022 [2 favorites]
the wrong type of account (savings vs. checking)
I do the payroll at my company. When folks enter their direct deposit info they have to note it either as savings or as checking. I never thought this was such a big deal, but a few months ago we had a new hire's paycheck get rejected by the bank because the employee said it was a checking account instead of savings. Account and routing numbers were right and everything, it was just this coding issue that caused it to fail. Major bank on his end, major payroll processor on my end. Payment rejected.
This is absolutely worth tracking down now and correcting.
posted by phunniemee at 1:38 PM on April 13, 2022
I do the payroll at my company. When folks enter their direct deposit info they have to note it either as savings or as checking. I never thought this was such a big deal, but a few months ago we had a new hire's paycheck get rejected by the bank because the employee said it was a checking account instead of savings. Account and routing numbers were right and everything, it was just this coding issue that caused it to fail. Major bank on his end, major payroll processor on my end. Payment rejected.
This is absolutely worth tracking down now and correcting.
posted by phunniemee at 1:38 PM on April 13, 2022
They'll try to deposit it, it won't go through, then they'll mail you a paper check.
Their website says refunds take about 4 weeks for mailed returns, so if it's been a little over a month since you filed, you're in the "probably still getting worked out" window. The Find My Refund tool updates overnight so you can start checking it daily.
posted by meemzi at 1:55 PM on April 13, 2022 [1 favorite]
Their website says refunds take about 4 weeks for mailed returns, so if it's been a little over a month since you filed, you're in the "probably still getting worked out" window. The Find My Refund tool updates overnight so you can start checking it daily.
posted by meemzi at 1:55 PM on April 13, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you have a money market account, that is not technically a savings account. I usually mark my money market account as a checking account (since I can write checks on it) and I have had no problems with transferring funds to and from it (including in the past, I think, the IRS although now that I have estimated taxes I don't bother getting a refund any more).
posted by metahawk at 5:06 PM on April 13, 2022
posted by metahawk at 5:06 PM on April 13, 2022
Nthing that the IRS is incredibly backlogged. But yes you should get this adjusted. Contact your bank and also try the IRS phone line at 800-829-1040. There are instructions for what you should expect on the call here.
posted by donut_princess at 4:17 AM on April 14, 2022
posted by donut_princess at 4:17 AM on April 14, 2022
Response by poster: Follow-up: the IRS made a direct deposit to our checking account in late August. The amount was slightly different from what we expected, so I suspect they made some corrections to our return which might explain part of the delay.
posted by Johnny Assay at 4:10 AM on November 8, 2022
posted by Johnny Assay at 4:10 AM on November 8, 2022
« Older How did my grandmother *actually* like her eggs? | Talk me out of buying this house? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
You can use the Where's my Refund tool which will update when they finally open your return and put it through their scanner.
posted by muddgirl at 12:30 PM on April 13, 2022 [3 favorites]