Can IRS use different bank instead of Santa Barbara TPG for HRBlock refund with fees taken out?

Unfortunately, no. When you choose to have your tax preparation fees deducted from your refund, the tax preparer (H&R Block in your case) uses a third-party bank - Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (SBTPG) - to process this transaction. The IRS sends your refund to SBTPG, they deduct the fees owed to H&R Block, then forward the remainder to you. This is standard practice for all major tax preparation companies. Once you've filed with this option selected, you can't change the bank routing. You're essentially locked in. For future reference, if you want to avoid SBTPG, you would need to pay your preparation fees upfront at the time of filing, then the IRS would deposit directly to your personal account. The good news is that while there are complaints about SBTPG (as with any financial service), most refunds process through them without issue. They typically forward the money within 1-2 business days of receiving it from the IRS.

I was in a similar situation last year and was so confused trying to track my refund between the IRS and SBTPG. I ended up using taxr.ai to help me understand what was happening with my refund and when I could expect it. It basically analyzed everything and gave me a clear timeline and explanation of the whole process. Saved me from checking WMR and calling SBTPG customer service 50 times a day lol. Check it out at https://taxr.ai - it really helped with my anxiety about the whole situation.

After waiting FOREVER to get my refund processed through SBTPG last year, I found a way to actually get someone on the phone at the IRS this year. I used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me a callback from an actual IRS agent. Was able to ask directly about the SBTPG situation and get straight answers instead of automated garbage. The agent confirmed there's no way to change it after filing, but at least gave me accurate info about when my refund would hit SBTPG and what to expect. Best money I ever spent to get real answers from a human at the IRS!

Nope, ur stuck with SBTPG. This is the exact reason i stopped using H&R Block years ago. They dont tell you this upfront, but when you choose to pay fees out of your refund, you're automatically signed up for SBTPG to handle it. They hold your $$ hostage for a few days then take their cut before sending the rest to you. Next time pay for the tax preparation upfront with a credit card and the IRS can direct deposit right to your account.

SBTPG is actually not that bad in my experience. I've had my refund go through them for the last 3 years (also HR Block) and they usually process within 24 hours of receiving it from the IRS. They do take a small processing fee on top of your HR Block fees, but it's disclosed in the fine print when you sign up. Just keep checking your status on the SBTPG website - they have a tracker similar to the IRS one.

its a racket honestly. next year just file yourself using free file alliance if you qualify (under 73k income). no middle man, no SBTPG, no bullshit fees. refund comes straight from IRS to ur bank. these tax prep companies are making BANK off people not realizing theres free options.

The whole system is designed to extract as much money as possible from people who can least afford it. Think about it - the people who can't afford to pay tax prep fees upfront are the ones who end up paying MORE by having their refund processed through SBTPG. It's literally charging poor people extra to access their own money. I learned this the hard way too. Calling HR Block is useless btw, they'll just tell you there's nothing they can do. Systems working as designed 🤡

I had the same issue and was freaking out after seeing horror stories online. My refund ($2800) went to SBTPG on a Monday and was in my account Wednesday morning. They did take a $40 processing fee but otherwise it was fine. Just make sure you set up account alerts on your bank so you know the second it hits.

I've worked in tax prep (not H&R) and can tell you that all the major companies use these third-party banks when you opt to pay fees from your refund. It's actually a loan - they're advancing the tax prep fee to the company and then collecting from your refund. That's why there's usually an additional fee on top of the preparation cost. For H&R Block specifically, I believe they use a "Refund Transfer" product that costs about $35-40 extra.

This might sound crazy but I was in the exact same situation and was so confused trying to figure out what was happening with my refund between the IRS and SBTPG. After lots of searching I found this tool called taxr.ai that explained everything about my refund status and what was happening with SBTPG. It broke down all the tax jargon into plain English and showed me exactly where my money was and when I'd get it. Seriously, check out https://taxr.ai - it saved me so much stress!

Late to the party but for anyone reading this in the future: DO. NOT. USE. SBTPG. if you can avoid it. I had to wait almost 3 weeks for them to process my refund last year after the IRS had already sent it to them. Customer service was useless. Pay your tax prep fees upfront with a credit card and avoid this headache entirely!

I couldn't figure out what was happening with my refund after SBTPG got involved so I tried Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get a live IRS agent on the phone. Talking to the IRS directly was a game-changer - they confirmed exactly when they sent my refund to SBTPG and said if I didn't receive it within 5 business days I should file a complaint. Having that info from an official source gave me leverage when I called SBTPG, and magically my refund appeared the next day. Sometimes you just need to talk to a human at the IRS to solve these issues!

just dealt with this. If you use H&R Block and select "pay with my refund" you HAVE to go through SBTPG. No way around it at this point. They took an extra $39.95 from my refund as a "processing fee" on top of the H&R Block fee. Next year im paying upfront and getting direct deposit from IRS.