Make sure to get everything in writing from your tax preparer about when you can expect the check. Some of these places will give you the runaround. If they say "2 weeks" ask them to write down exactly when you should call if you haven't received it by then.

Most folks saying 2-3 weeks here are accurate based on my experience. BUT if you wanna know exactly what's happening with your refund, call the IRS directly. I tried forever to reach an agent and finally used claimyr.com which got me a callback from an actual agent. The agent was able to see exactly where my refund was in the process and told me when I could expect it to be returned to SBTG. Made me feel so much better having real info instead of guesses from reddit.

If your state refund also hasnt come through that's another sign you probably need to verify. When I had to verify, both federal and state were held up.

Did you claim any credits like EITC or Child Tax Credit? Those automatically get extra scrutiny and can cause delays even without needing to verify identity.

Wait until you find out they charge you an extra $40 "technology fee" for the privilege of having your refund go through SBTPG first. It's in the fine print when you choose to pay your tax prep fees from your refund. Total ripoff.

This is my 3rd year as a tax preparer and this question comes up all the time. Here's the deal: The IRS processes refunds and sends them out basically 24/7. But if you chose to have your tax preparation fees taken out of your refund, you added a middleman (usually SBTPG). They receive your refund from the IRS, deduct the fees you owe, and then forward the rest to you. SBTPG only processes these transfers once per day at 2:30 PM Pacific. This is purely their business decision and has nothing to do with the IRS.

This has been the WORST tax year ever. Filed 2/10, still no refund, WMR is useless, can't reach anyone on the phone. I'm convinced they're deliberately holding our money to use it as long as possible. They charge us penalties and interest when we pay late but where's OUR interest for them being late with refunds? The whole system is rigged against us.

I had a similar problem last year and even calling the IRS didn't help. No one could explain why my refund was delayed for months. Then I found taxr.ai and it instantly showed me the problem - an income mismatch where my employer reported slightly different wages than what I entered. The tool spotted the error right away and even told me how to fix it. Saved me hours of frustration. Getting help to decrypt the convoluted IRS system is always worth it.

Had the EXACT same issue. Ended up having to go through my transcript to figure out what was happening since SBTPG and Credit Karma kept blaming each other. Found out using taxr.ai that there was actually a refund offset I didn't know about. It explained why the amount was different from what I expected. The IRS took part of my refund for an old student loan debt but no one bothered to tell me! Once I understood what happened, I stopped wasting time with SBTPG and Credit Karma. https://taxr.ai literally saved me days of stress and confusion.

For future reference - never EVER get your refund through the tax prep company. Always choose direct deposit straight from IRS to your bank. It's faster and you avoid all these SBTPG headaches. The only reason to go through SBTPG is if you're getting an advance or having fees taken out of your refund (which usually means you're paying extra fees).