Be careful about relying on comparison with your friend! I filed on January 24th at exactly 8:15 AM and my colleague filed at 3:45 PM the same day. She got her refund on February 8th, and mine didn't come until February 15th. The IRS processes returns in batches of precisely 7-10 million at a time, and your position in the queue can make a difference of up to 14 days, even if you filed on the same calendar date. If you don't see any movement by February 14th (exactly 21 days), then you should start investigating further.

Has anyone checked if PATH Act delays might be affecting this return? If you claimed EITC or ACTC, the IRS is legally prohibited from issuing your refund before mid-February, regardless of when you filed. Are you claiming any refundable credits?

It might be worth contacting your bank directly to see if they can check for any pending deposits or rejected transactions. Sometimes, particularly with certain financial institutions, they might possibly have received the deposit but placed a temporary hold on it due to various verification requirements. Additionally, you could potentially request that they specifically look for any incoming ACH transfers from the Treasury Department, as these might occasionally be processed differently than regular deposits.

I just learned something important about this year's refund processing that might help explain your situation: Step 1: The IRS is batching refunds differently this year. Some deposits that would normally go out on Wednesdays are now being processed on Fridays. Step 2: The Treasury Department has implemented new fraud prevention measures that can add 1-3 business days to the processing time after your DDD. Step 3: Many banks don't process incoming government deposits on weekends, so if your DDD was a Thursday or Friday, it might not hit until the following Tuesday or Wednesday. Step 4: If your refund amount was over $10,000, additional verification is automatically triggered, which doesn't show up in the WMR tool but will delay your deposit.

Isn't it crazy how we file as early as possible to get our refunds quickly, but then end up waiting longer than people who file in March? I'm in the same boat - filed January 29th with CTC/EIC and still nothing. My transcript says N/A for 2023. What's the point of the February 15th PATH Act date if they're still going to make us wait until April? Why even accept returns in January if they're not going to look at them until March?

I was in your friend's exact situation last year - filed January 28th with both credits. Nothing happened until March 23rd, then suddenly my transcript updated, WMR changed to approved, and I had my money 3 days later. This year I filed February 15th instead, and I already got my refund last week. From comparing with others in my tax groups, it seems like January filers with credits are actually waiting longer than mid-February filers. The system is definitely not first-come-first-served!

This is SO FRUSTRATING!!! I'm in the exact same boat and I need my money NOW! Filed January 23rd the minute the system opened, accepted same day, and I'm still waiting with the same codes you have! I've planned everything around getting this refund by mid-February and now I'm having to put car repairs on credit cards! I've called the IRS 14 times and can't get through to anyone! I'm checking my transcript every single morning at 6am hoping to see that beautiful 846 code!

Got accepted 1/23. Had 570/971 codes. Waited 3 weeks. DDD appeared last Thursday. Money deposited Tuesday. No contact from IRS. No changes to refund amount. Just normal processing. Path Act doesn't apply to me either. System works slowly. Just wait.

I was in the EXACT same situation on February 18th. Filed on 2/2, verified on 2/11, and my WMR changed just like yours. My transcripts finally updated on March 2nd and I got my refund on March 5th. The system IS working, it's just painfully slow this year. And yes, people who filed after me got their refunds first too, which was super frustrating. Just hang in there - based on my timeline, you should see movement very soon.

I've been tracking my tax return processing for the last three years, and I've noticed some patterns that might help explain what's happening: 1. First, check if you claimed any credits (EIC, CTC, etc.) as these automatically add 2-3 weeks 2. Next, look at your filing method - did you use a tax preparer or DIY software? 3. Then consider if you had any unusual deductions or income sources 4. Finally, did you opt for direct deposit or paper check? In my experience, the simplest returns with no credits, standard deduction, W-2 income only, and direct deposit get processed first regardless of filing date. It's not fair, but it seems to be how their system prioritizes workload.