Anyone received their tax refund on Karma Money/Credit Karma Spend account yet?
I e-filed my 2023 tax return through TurboTax on April 10th and chose to have my refund sent to my Credit Karma Money/Karma Spend account. IRS accepted my return same day, and my refund was approved on May 3rd. It's supposed to be $2,570 and the IRS site says it was sent to my bank account on May 8th. It's now May 12th and still nothing showing up in my Karma Money account. Starting to get nervous because I've read some horror stories about Credit Karma/Karma Money refund delays this year. Has anyone successfully received their refund through Karma Money recently? Or am I being paranoid? This is the first year I've used this account for my refund instead of my regular bank.
50 comments
Nia Harris
Tax professional here. This is a common issue with some of the newer fintech banking platforms this year. Credit Karma Money (now Karma Money after the Cash App acquisition) has been experiencing delays processing IRS direct deposits. The delay is typically 1-5 business days beyond what traditional banks take. Since your deposit was sent May 8th and today is the 12th, you're only at 3 business days (not counting weekend). I'd recommend waiting until at least May 15th before taking further action. If it doesn't arrive by then: 1. Contact Karma Money support directly (their customer service is actually decent) 2. Ask them specifically about pending direct deposits from the Treasury 3. If they don't help, you may need to contact the IRS (though that's a last resort due to wait times) The good news is the IRS shows it as sent, which means your return was processed successfully. This is just a delay in the final leg of the journey.
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
Thank you for this response! I've been going crazy checking my account every few hours. I'll try to be more patient and wait until the 15th before panicking.
0 coins
19d
Mateo Gonzalez
I had the exact same issue last year with Karma Money. It took 4 business days after the IRS sent it. Don't worry too much!
0 coins
18d
Aisha Ali
quick question - do you know if this applies to all online banks or just Karma? I used Chime and am worried now π¬
0 coins
17d
Nia Harris
Different fintech banks have different processing times. Chime is generally better than Karma for tax refunds in my experience. They typically process them within 1-2 business days, similar to traditional banks.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Ethan Moore
I had the same problem and was stressing big time. I tried using this tool called taxr.ai that actually helped me figure out what was happening with my refund. The tool reads your IRS transcript and explained exactly where my money was in the process. Turns out my refund was flagged for a random verification but was released 2 days later. The predictions from the tool were spot on. I don't think I would've understood what was happening without it. Here's the link if you're interested: https://taxr.ai Seriously, way better than trying to decipher cryptic IRS codes or hoping someone on Reddit knows what's going on.
0 coins
Yuki Nakamura
Sounds interesting. How exactly does it work? Does it just read your transcript or does it do more?
0 coins
21d
Ethan Moore
It's actually crazy good! You upload your transcript and it breaks everything down into normal human language. It told me exactly when my refund would arrive and was accurate to the day. Way better than the generic "your refund is being processed" messages from the IRS. I'm telling EVERYONE about this now because tax season stressed me out so bad π©
0 coins
19d
StarSurfer
another tax service promising magic solutions? π what makes this different from all the other scams?
0 coins
18d
Ethan Moore
Not a service - just a tool that reads your transcript. I was skeptical too but it's the only thing that actually explained what was going on with my money when the IRS was being vague. You still have to handle everything yourself, it just makes the information understandable.
0 coins
17d
Write a comment...
Carmen Reyes
I was in the same situation last month and was literally losing my mind. After trying to call the IRS for 3 days straight and getting nowhere, I found this calling service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual IRS agent. Best thing I've ever spent money on because the agent was able to see exactly where my refund was and confirmed it was sent to Karma but was delayed on their end. Got my money two days later. Talking to a real person saved me so much stress instead of just guessing what was happening.
0 coins
Andre Moreau
Wait so you had to pay money just to talk to the IRS? That seems sketchy...
0 coins
21d
Carmen Reyes
The IRS is free to call but GOOD LUCK getting through. I spent hours hearing the "due to high call volume" message before giving up. This service just handles the waiting and calls you when an agent is available. Totally worth it considering I got my $3k refund unstuck.
0 coins
18d
Zoe Christodoulou
does this calling thing actually work? i've been trying to reach someone at the IRS for weeks π
0 coins
17d
Carmen Reyes
100% worked for me. The agent I spoke with was super helpful once I finally got through. I wasted so much time trying to do it myself before finding this.
0 coins
16d
Jamal Thompson
How long did it take to get a callback? I heard the IRS wait times are insane this year
0 coins
16d
Carmen Reyes
I got a call back in about 2.5 hours. Way better than the days I spent trying on my own!
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Mei Chen
I used Karma Money for my refund (about $1,850) and had zero issues. Showed up exactly when the IRS said it would, which was 3 days after the "sent" date. Maybe it depends on how much ur refund is?
0 coins
Write a comment...
CosmicCadet
The IRS AND these fintech banks are a joke. I've been waiting on a refund for 17 WEEKS now. First the IRS held it for "verification" now my bank is playing games. Never again using anything but a real bank for tax stuff.
0 coins
Liam O'Connor
17 weeks?! omg π³ what did the IRS say when you called them?
0 coins
19d
CosmicCadet
Bold of u to assume I could get anyone on the phone π€£ I've tried calling at least 20 times and either get disconnected or told to call back later.
0 coins
17d
Amara Adeyemi
I had a similar nightmare situation last year. Try calling exactly at 7am eastern when they open - that's how I finally got through.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Giovanni Gallo
FWIW I got my refund on my Karma Money account last week. It took exactly 4 business days after the IRS sent it. Don't stress too much yet.
0 coins
Write a comment...
Fatima Al-Mazrouei
Might want to check if Credit Karma/Karma Money put a hold on your deposit. I've heard they sometimes do that for large refunds (anything over $2k). You might need to contact their customer service directly to get them to release it.
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
That's a good point - I'll reach out to their support team today. My refund is $2,570 so maybe that triggered something on their end.
0 coins
16d
Dylan Wright
i work at a bank (not karma) and can confirm we sometimes have to verify large government deposits before releasing funds. totally normal procedure.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
NebulaKnight
ok so im late to the party on this, but has anyone tried using credit karma for the advance loan thing they do? i was thinking about doing that next year to get some $$ faster but now im worried after seeing this thread....
0 coins
Sofia Ramirez
Don't do the advance loans!! Terrible idea. They take a big cut and you'll get your refund relatively quickly anyway if you file electronically. Not worth it.
0 coins
16d
Dmitry Popov
I did the advance loan this year and regretted it. The fees were higher than advertised when all was said and done. Just be patient and wait for your actual refund.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Ava Rodriguez
My story is a bit different but might help. I filed on March 18 and was supposed to get my refund direct deposited to Karma Money by April 1. It never showed up. After 3 weeks of checking daily and stressing, I finally got through to the IRS and found out they had rejected the deposit because the account number was off by ONE digit (my mistake when entering it). They mailed a paper check instead which finally arrived 6 weeks later. Check that your account info was entered correctly!
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
Just double-checked and my account info is correct on the return. Good suggestion though!
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Miguel Ortiz
YES! I got my refund this year on Karma Money WITHOUT any issues. Filed through H&R Block on March 15, IRS sent it April 2, and it hit my Karma account April 6. No problems at all. $4,200 refund if that matters.
0 coins
Write a comment...
Zainab Khalil
Maybe check your tax transcript? Would show if there's an issue on the IRS side. You can pull it from irs.gov
0 coins
QuantumQuest
THIS! βοΈ The transcript will tell you exactly what's going on. Can be kinda hard to read tho, all those codes are confusing AF
0 coins
16d
Connor Murphy
transcript saved me so much anxiety. mine showed a code 571 which apparently meant they were reviewing something but then the following week showed 846 which means refund issued. helped me stop obsessively checking my bank account lol
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Yara Haddad
I'm dealing with exacttly the same problem with cashapp!! filed april 1st, irs says it was sent to my account on may 2nd but NOTHING in my cashapp. im starting to think these online bank things are all scams.
0 coins
Keisha Robinson
Had the same issue last year with CashApp. Took them 5 business days after the IRS sent it. Just wait it out - should show up soon
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Paolo Conti
Have you checked the Where's My Refund tool on the IRS website recently? Sometimes the status there updates with more info if there's a problem.
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
Yeah, it just says "Your refund was sent to your bank account on May 8th" with no other info. That's why I'm getting worried since it's been 4 days now.
0 coins
16d
Amina Sow
That tool is basically useless lol. It told me my refund was sent and I didn't get it for another 2 weeks π€‘
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
GalaxyGazer
After the nightmare I had with my refund this year, I'm never using an online-only bank again. The IRS sent my $1,800 to Varo on February 28, and it didn't show up in my account until March 10. ELEVEN DAYS of panic and customer service giving me the runaround. Going back to a real bank next year...
0 coins
Write a comment...
Oliver Wagner
I literally just got my refund in my Karma Money account yesterday! Filed on April 1st, IRS sent it May 5th, and it appeared in my account May 11th. So that's 6 days total including the weekend. Hang in there!
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
That makes me feel better! Maybe I just need to wait a couple more days. Thanks for sharing!
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Natasha Kuznetsova
ok here's the ACTUAL solution: I used taxr.ai to decode my transcript (its like $30 but worth EVERY penny) and it showed me my refund was fine but just delayed. Then I used Claimyr to speak with an IRS agent (another $25ish) who confirmed everything and told me exactly when it would hit my account. Both were right! After weeks of stress I finally got my money. Honestly the best money I've spent all year.
0 coins
Javier Mendoza
Just here to say I tried both of these services too and they were incredible. So nice to actually understand what's happening instead of being in the dark. Got my refund issue fixed in days instead of months of waiting.
0 coins
16d
Emma Thompson
I'm always skeptical of these services but man am I desperate at this point. Might have to try them.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
Malik Davis
Fun fact: even real banks have issues with IRS deposits sometimes! My friend works at Wells Fargo and says they occasionally have to manually release tax refunds that get flagged by their fraud system. Might be worth calling Karma to see if that happened.
0 coins
Write a comment...
Isabella Santos
did you work with a tax preparer? sometimes they take out their fees from the refund before it hits your account which can cause delays
0 coins
GalacticGuardian
I just used TurboTax and paid their fee separately with a credit card, so they shouldn't be taking anything from my refund directly.
0 coins
16d
Write a comment...
StarStrider
I've used Karma Money for 2 years now and never had issues with tax refunds. Give it till early next week before freaking out. The banking system is slower than you'd think even in 2025! π’
0 coins
Write a comment...