According to the IRS.gov FAQ section on refund timing (https://www.irs.gov/refunds/tax-season-refund-frequently-asked-questions), once they send your refund, they consider it delivered. The extra step with the preparer is completely separate. I had this same setup last year. My experience: WMR showed my DD date as Feb 28, but I didn't see money until March 3. The IRS transcript showed code 846 (refund issued) on the first date, but the money was actually sitting at Santa Barbara Tax Products Group for those days in between. Pro tip: Google your tax preparer's name + "refund status" to find their tracking tool. Most have one that shows when they receive it from IRS and when they send it to your bank.

This is like buying a concert ticket through StubHub versus directly from the venue - there's always that middle-man fee and delay! I did this last year with H&R Block and my refund came 2 days after the official DD date. My friend who used TurboTax with the same setup got hers 4 days after. Another who used a local preparer waited almost a week. Honestly, next year I'm just paying the prep fee upfront. The peace of mind knowing exactly when my money will arrive is worth it. Plus, when you do the math, you're essentially paying extra for what amounts to a very short-term loan. I was so relieved when I finally got my money though!

According to the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (IRC § 7803(a)(3)), you are entitled to clear explanations of tax laws and procedures. While states have their own versions of these rights, most include provisions for timely processing and communication. However, during peak filing season, states can invoke processing delay exceptions under administrative procedure acts. If your review exceeds 60 days, you may have grounds to file a Taxpayer Advocate request, which many states now offer similar to the federal program.

According to the state refund tracker website I found (taxstatusinfo.com), the average review period this year is 32 days! I was freaking out about mine too until I saw that data. My state refund was stuck in review for 29 days and then suddenly appeared in my account this morning with no notification or status change on their website!

Let me break this down for you: • The 846 code means your refund was approved by the IRS • Offsets happen AFTER IRS approval, which is why they don't show on transcripts • You should receive a letter explaining each offset within 2-3 weeks • If your refund exceeds total offsets, you'll get the remainder • Timing: expect any remaining refund 2-3 weeks after original deposit date • Each agency with an offset has different appeal/hardship options Don't lose hope completely. Even with offsets, you might still get some portion back if your refund was larger than the total debts.

Be careful. I ignored offset notices. Big mistake. They took my entire refund last year. $4,782 gone. All for an old student loan. I didn't even know about. From 2008. The worst part? If I had responded to the letters, I could have set up a payment plan. Only needed $5 monthly payments. Would have kept most of my refund. Don't ignore any letters you get. Respond immediately.

omg I'm literally in the EXACT same situation rn! First time w/ Drake + Serve card. Filed on 2/14, got my DDD of 3/15 this morning, and still waiting on state (filed in CA). My state was supposed to be here by 3/1 according to the estimate! I called Drake customer service yesterday and they said: 1) Fed refund should hit Serve card within 24-48hrs of DDD 2) They take the fees from federal ONLY 3) State refunds are taking longer this yr bc of increased fraud checks Hope this helps! Lmk when ur $ hits the card so I can compare!

Have you considered just using direct deposit to your bank account next year instead of the Serve card? I used to use those prepaid cards but the fees were ridiculous and timing was always a mystery. Most tax software now lets you pay the preparation fees separately (credit card, debit, or even from next year's refund) without requiring the prepaid card option. Might save you both money and stress for next tax season!

Think of tax refund deposits like airplanes landing at different airports. Traditional banks are like major international airports with lots of procedures and scheduled landing times. Cash App and other fintechs are like smaller regional airports that can sometimes process arrivals more quickly because they have less traffic. In my experience helping community members with tax questions, Cash App users typically report receiving funds 1-3 days before their official DDD, while traditional bank users usually receive funds on the exact DDD. The technical reason is that Cash App often posts the pending transaction as available immediately, while traditional banks typically wait for full ACH settlement, which follows a standardized Federal Reserve processing schedule.

Just to clarify something that hasn't been mentioned yet - the routing number for Cash App is actually the routing number for Sutton Bank or Lincoln Savings Bank (depending on when you opened your account). I remember back in 2022 when I first used Cash App for taxes, I was confused about this. Make sure you're using the routing and account numbers shown specifically in the Cash App direct deposit section, not just your Cash App $cashtag. The IRS doesn't recognize $cashtags, only proper bank routing and account numbers.

I've used Jackson Hewitt with the Serve card for the past three tax seasons, and I've noticed the timeline getting longer each year. Last year I received my refund on February 24th after filing on February 8th - so 16 days total. The year before was only 11 days for the whole process. I'm a bit worried this year because I'm already at day 18 with no refund yet. I called Jackson Hewitt yesterday and they said the IRS has been slower this year with processing returns that have tax credits like the Child Tax Credit. Do you have any credits on your return? That might explain the delay compared to last year.

Back in 2022, I had this exact same setup with Jackson Hewitt and the Serve card. I remember checking my card balance obsessively! One thing I learned from that experience is that the day of the week matters a lot. If the IRS releases your refund on a Friday, Jackson Hewitt often doesn't process it until Monday or Tuesday of the following week. Last year I filed on a Monday and got my refund exactly 14 days later on a Monday. The year before I filed on a Thursday and got it 16 days later on a Saturday. Since you filed on February 12th (a Monday), you might see it hit your card early next week.

I don't think waiting until Tuesday is necessarily a bad strategy. Last year I had a similar freeze and panicked, called multiple times, and even went to my local IRS office. None of it made any difference - the freeze lifted exactly when it was scheduled to in their system. I've learned that with the IRS, sometimes the best approach is patience. They have internal timeframes for reviews that no amount of calling will change. I keep detailed records of all my tax documents, income sources, and even screenshots of my transcripts through the process just in case, but I've found that most of these freezes resolve themselves if you just wait it out.

This is so frustrating!! I'm dealing with the EXACT same thing right now and it's making me crazy! 😤 If you do call back Tuesday and get any helpful info, please update us! One thing that helped me was pulling my wage and income transcript instead of just the account transcript - sometimes you can spot what triggered the review. For me it was a mismatch between what my employer reported and what I entered (they made a tiny error on my W-2). Once I figured that out, I felt better knowing it wasn't something more serious. Might be worth checking if you haven't already.

I just checked my transcript after seeing this post and I have exactly the same situation! My transcript shows a DD date of 3/1/24 but WMR is still on the first bar. Just checked my bank and nothing yet, but I'm with a traditional bank that doesn't typically release funds early. According to my calculations, I've been waiting exactly 24 days since filing on 2/4/24. This is cutting it close for me as I have a $1,478 car payment due on 3/5/24 that I was counting on this refund for. Had no idea the systems were so disconnected!

I experienced the same Transaction Posting Discrepancy (TPD) last week. My Account Transcript showed an 846 Refund Issued code with DDD of 2/21/24, while WMR remained in Return Received status. The deposit hit my account approximately 30 hours after the transcript updated. This is consistent with the Standard Banking ACH Protocol that allows receiving institutions to post pending credits up to 48 hours before the effective date. Success!

Has anyone tried checking their account transcript rather than just the return transcript? I've noticed in previous years that sometimes the account transcript shows pending refund adjustments before they appear on the return transcript. Might give you earlier insight into what's happening with the 570/971 codes.

I work with tax clients and can confirm this pattern is generally accurate. Last year, I had a client with 570/971 codes sharing the March 11 date. Their transcript updated exactly 8 days later with code 846. Another client had 570 dated April 3 and 971 dated April 10 - their case took 5 weeks to resolve because they needed to verify identity. One thing I've noticed is that the cycle code on your transcript (the 8-digit number at the top) can tell you which day of the week your account updates. For example, if your cycle code ends in 05, you're on a Thursday update schedule. So checking your transcript that specific day gives you the most current information.

Does anyone know if this 45-day review thing resets the 21-day normal processing time? I filed back in Feb and my WMR was stuck on "still processing" for ages, now I got this 570 code last week. Idk if I should be counting 45 days from now or if this is just part of the normal delay?

Has anyone had success getting the 45-day review period shortened? Last year I was in a similar situation and really needed my refund for medical bills. Just wondering if there's anything that actually works to speed things up?