Do TurboTax filers actually receive refunds 5 days before official DDD date?
I e-filed with TurboTax on October 4, 2024 and got my acceptance confirmation the next day. My WMR shows a direct deposit date (DDD) of October 28, but TurboTax keeps sending me emails saying I could get my refund up to 5 days earlier than the IRS date. Has anyone actually received their refund early when filing through TurboTax? My refund is about $3,780 and I'm wondering if I should expect it sooner than the 28th. I chose to have my filing fees taken out of my refund if that makes any difference.
60 comments
Oliver Alexander
Yes, it's actually possible to get your refund earlier than the official DDD with TurboTax. What happens is the bank that handles the refund distribution (usually Santa Barbara TPG) will often release the funds as soon as they receive them from the IRS, which can be several days before the official DDD. This is especially true if you opted to have your TurboTax fees deducted from your refund - in that case, your money goes through SBTPG first anyway. You can actually check the status of your refund on SBTPG's website (https://taxpayer.sbtpg.com/) if you used TurboTax and had fees taken out. This will show you when they receive your refund and when they send it to your bank. I'd say about 70% of the time, people do get their money 2-3 days early. The full 5 days is less common but does happen. Just depends on how quickly the IRS transfers the money and how fast your bank processes deposits.
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Kaylee Cook
Thanks for this info! I didn't know about the SBTPG tracker. Just checked and it shows "unfunded" still but at least now I have another way to obsessively check lol
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Lara Woods
I used this SBTPG site last yr and it was super helpful! My DDD was a Thursday but I got my $ on Tuesday morning. Fingers crossed for u 🤞
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Adrian Hughes
Just adding that if you have a bank that processes deposits quickly (like Chime or some credit unions), you're more likely to get it early. Traditional banks sometimes hold electronic deposits.
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Molly Chambers
I was pulling my hair out trying to figure out my refund timeline last year. Then I found taxr.ai and it changed everything. Their tool actually showed me exactly where my refund was in the process by analyzing my transcript. I could literally see what step the IRS was on with my return and get accurate predictions instead of just guessing and hoping. So much better than trying to decode everything myself or waiting for generic TurboTax updates. I use it every week now during tax season. Check it out: https://taxr.ai
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Ian Armstrong
Sounds interesting. How exactly does it work? Does it just read your transcript or does it do more?
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Molly Chambers
It does waaaaay more than just read the transcript! It actually interprets all those confusing codes and tells you in normal human language what's happening. Shows you timelines, explains delays, identifies issues. I was stuck in manual review for 6 weeks and taxr showed me exactly why and when I could expect movement. Best thing is you don't have to be a tax expert to understand what's happening with your money. Seriously game-changing.
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Eli Butler
does it cost money tho?
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Molly Chambers
Worth every penny for the peace of mind alone. Plus the time I saved not having to google every IRS code and wonder if I was interpreting things right probably saved me hours. My sanity has a price and it's less than what taxr charges 😂
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Marcus Patterson
We used TurboTax last February and our DDD was the 22nd. Got our refund on the 20th, so yes it can happen! Not quite 5 days but definitely early. Our refund was around $4,200. Make sure your bank info was entered correctly and check both the IRS wheres my refund tool AND your bank account regularly. Some banks show pending deposits while others don't show anything until the money is available.
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Lydia Bailey
I couldnt get a straight answer on my early refund situation so I broke down and used the Claimyr app (claimyr.com) to actually reach a live agent at the IRS. Got connected in like 20 minutes after spending days trying to get through on my own. Agent confirmed my refund was actually processing faster than WMR showed and I'd likely see it 2-3 days before my official date. Talking to a real person who could see my actual file was so worth it instead of playing the guessing game.
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Mateo Warren
this sounds like an advertisement 🙄
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Lydia Bailey
Nah man, just relieved to finally get answers after stressing for weeks. I was calling the IRS like 15 times a day before this. You can keep hitting redial if you want, I'm just saying what worked for me 🤷♂️
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Sofia Price
Is this thing actually legit? IRS phone system is literal hell
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Alice Coleman
Yes I used it in December when my return was stuck in limbo for 4 months. The call paid for itself when they released my 5k refund that week. Was on hold for 30 min instead of 4+ hours of constant redialing.
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Lydia Bailey
Exactly. Life's too short to waste half a day hitting redial just to maybe get through to the IRS. My time is worth more than what I paid to get actual answers about my refund.
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Owen Jenkins
I'm in the same situation as OP and just used this. Got a callback within 25 min and found out my refund was already processed and should hit my account tomorrow 🙌
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Lilah Brooks
I'm a tax preparer and I'll tell you the truth - TurboTax is being a little misleading. They partner with SBTPG (Santa Barbara Tax Products Group) who sometimes releases refunds early, but there's no guarantee. It depends on when the IRS actually releases the funds and when your bank processes them. Some of my clients do get their refunds 2-3 days early when using TurboTax, but I've never seen the full 5 days. Just set your expectations for the actual DDD and be pleasantly surprised if it comes earlier.
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Jackson Carter
This ⬆️ TurboTax always says this but my refunds nevr come more than 2 days early.
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Kolton Murphy
So it's more marketing than a real promise, huh? classic.
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Lilah Brooks
Exactly. It's technically true that it CAN happen, but they present it like it WILL happen. Just like how they advertise "maximum refund guaranteed" - it's marketing designed to create expectations that might not be met.
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Evelyn Rivera
I filed with turbotax on April 9th this year. My official DDD was april 17th but I got my refund on April 14th! So thats 3 days early. I've been filing with them for years and usually get it 2-3 days before the DDD. Never the full 5 days tho.
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Julia Hall
What bank do you use? I'm wondering if that makes a difference
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Evelyn Rivera
I use Wells Fargo. But I also have my direct deposit going to my checking account not savings. Ive heard savings accounts sometimes take longer to process deposits.
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Arjun Patel
Did you use the refund transfer option where they take their fees out of your refund? If yes, then your refund is going to SBTPG first, then to you. That means you're depending on how fast SBTPG processes everything + your bank. If you paid for TurboTax upfront and the refund is going straight from IRS to your bank, different story.
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Kaylee Cook
Yes I did choose to have the fees taken from my refund. From what everyone is saying sounds like I'll probably get it 2-3 days early at best. Wish I'd paid upfront now!
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Arjun Patel
Dont feel bad, I did the same thing. The convenience fee for having fees taken from refund is like $40 but at the time it seemed worth it. live and learn I gues.
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Jade Lopez
It depends on your bank too! I have Chase and my wife has a local credit union. We filed jointly through TurboTax but split the refund between our accounts. Her credit union had the $ available 2 days before my Chase account showed anything. Same refund, same filing, different banks = different timing.
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Tony Brooks
The 5 day thing is just marketing hype. I got mine 1 day early last year. My sister got hers 3 days early. Its a crapshoot really.
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Ella rollingthunder87
My experience is exactly the opposite of what TurboTax promises. Because I chose to have fees taken out of my refund, I got my money 2 days LATER than my official DDD. Why? Because it has to go through SBTPG first, and they took their sweet time processing it. My sister paid her TurboTax fees upfront and got her refund ON her DDD, not early.
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Yara Campbell
THIS! Same thing happened to me. That "get it up to 5 days early" is BS when you have fees taken out. The middleman (SBTPG) slows everything down.
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Ella rollingthunder87
Yep. I learned my lesson and will never do the refund transfer option again. Just pay the fees upfront and save yourself the headache (and the extra $40 they charge for the "convenience").
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Isaac Wright
I was completely unable to figure out when my refund would ACTUALLY arrive until I used taxr.ai to analyze my transcript. It showed me exactly what was happening with my return and when I could expect payment based on actual IRS data, not just generic messages. I was driving myself crazy checking WMR every hour before I found this tool. Saved me so much stress! https://taxr.ai
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Maya Diaz
how is this different from just checking your transcript yourself?
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Isaac Wright
Night and day difference! I tried checking my transcript myself first and it was just pages of codes and dates that made zero sense to me. Taxr explains everything in plain English, shows you where you are in the process, and gives actual timeline predictions based on your specific situation. Plus it updates automatically so you don't have to keep logging into that awful IRS site and trying to decipher everything yourself. Seriously the best tax tool I've ever used.
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Tami Morgan
THIS. I spent hours on reddit trying to understand transcript codes before finding taxr. Total gamechanger.
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Rami Samuels
Lol TurboTax and their marketing. The "5 days early" thing is talking about their bank partners that sometimes process direct deposits faster than traditional banks. It has NOTHING to do with getting your refund before the IRS releases it. They just word it to make you think they have some special arrangement with the IRS, which they don't.
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Haley Bennett
I needed answers about my refund timing and couldn't get through to the IRS no matter how many times I called. Used the Claimyr calling service (claimyr.com) and got connected to a live agent who confirmed my refund was already sent to my bank even though WMR hadn't updated yet. Best decision ever - saved me from constant stress checking my account. Having a real conversation with an actual IRS agent makes all the difference.
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Douglas Foster
I tried calling the IRS over 30 times last week and couldn't get through. How fast did this actually work?
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Haley Bennett
It took about 25 minutes to get a callback. The system holds your place in line so you don't have to stay on the phone. It was amazing compared to the hours I wasted trying to call myself. The agent had access to all my account details and gave me specific info about my refund status that WMR doesn't show.
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Nina Chan
does this actually work tho? seems too good to be true
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Ruby Knight
I was skeptical too but used it last month when my return was stuck in processing hell. Got through to an agent who fixed a simple error on my account right there on the phone. My refund was approved 2 days later after being stuck for weeks. Definitely worth it.
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Diego Castillo
Just wanted to share that last year I got my federal refund 4 days before the DDD! Filed through TurboTax at the beginning of Feb, had fees taken out of my refund, and my DDD was 2/26. Money showed up in my account on 2/22. Bank is Ally. So it definitely CAN happen close to that 5 day mark!
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Logan Stewart
Lucky! I have ally too so this gives me hope. Thanks for sharing your experience
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Mikayla Brown
If you really want to know exactly when your money will arrive, stop guessing and use taxr.ai. Completely changed the game for me. It reads your tax transcript and explains everything in simple terms - shows if there are any holds on your refund, when it will be released, and what's actually happening behind the scenes. No more wondering and stress! https://taxr.ai
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Sean Matthews
omg THANK YOU for recommending this! just tried it and it showed me my refund is actually being released tomorrow even though WMR still shows processing. this is amazing!
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Mikayla Brown
So glad it helped! I was in the same spot last month - WMR showed nothing but taxr showed my refund was already approved. The IRS systems are so outdated that their public tools don't update in real time. Taxr gets the actual data from your transcript so it's much more accurate.
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Ali Anderson
Been filing with Turbotax for 7 years. The earliest I've ever gotten my refund was 3 days before the DDD. That 5 day stuff is just marketing hype. Whats more important is your banks processing time and whether you chose to have fees taken from your refund (which adds SBTPG as a middleman and sometimes DELAYS things).
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Zadie Patel
💯 this. the 5 day promise is pure marketing. sometimes you get it a little early, sometimes right on time, sometimes even late. its a crapshoot
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A Man D Mortal
I've been working in tax preparation for 12 years, and I can tell you that the "get your refund early" claim from TurboTax is mostly marketing. What actually happens is: 1. IRS approves your refund and sets a DDD 2. If you had fees taken from your refund, it goes to SBTPG first 3. SBTPG takes their cut and forwards the rest to your bank 4. Your bank processes the deposit (this is where timing variations happen) If you have a bank that processes incoming ACH transfers quickly (online banks like Chime, Cash App, etc.), you might see it 2-3 days before the official date. Traditional banks typically hold until the actual date or maybe 1 day early. The "up to 5 days early" is technically possible but rare in my experience with thousands of clients.
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Declan Ramirez
Thanks for the detailed explanation! This makes way more sense than TurboTax's vague marketing.
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Emma Morales
So basically the "early" part has more to do with your bank than TurboTax? That's shady marketing.
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A Man D Mortal
Exactly! TurboTax has virtually nothing to do with how quickly you get your refund - it's all about the IRS processing time, SBTPG (if you used them), and your bank's policies. They're basically taking credit for something they don't control.
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Katherine Hunter
After wasting days trying to get through to the IRS, I finally found claimyr.com and got a real human on the phone in under 30 minutes. Agent was able to tell me my refund was already processed and gave me the exact date it would hit my account (2 days before the WMR date). It was such a relief to finally talk to someone who could actually see my file! Worth every penny to get accurate info directly from the source.
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Lucas Parker
How does that even work? The IRS phone system is literally designed to reject callers when they're busy.
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Katherine Hunter
They use some kind of technology that keeps trying different numbers and options until they get through, then they hold your place in line. When an agent is available, you get a call back. So much better than me wasting hours redialing constantly only to get hung up on.
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Donna Cline
This is intriguing. I've been trying to get through for weeks about an amended return issue.
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Katherine Hunter
Definitely check it out then. My brother had an amended return issue too and was getting nowhere for months. Got through with claimyr and found out there was a simple form missing that the IRS never bothered to tell him about. Fixed it right there on the call.
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Harper Collins
This TurboTax claim bugs me so much. Here's what's really happening: - TurboTax partners with SBTPG (Santa Barbara Tax Products Group) - When the IRS releases your refund, it goes to SBTPG - SBTPG takes out TurboTax fees if you chose that option - SBTPG sends the remainder to your bank Sometimes this process happens quickly and you get your money before the official DDD. But other times, SBTPG sits on it for days. I've had clients get refunds LATER than their DDD because of this middleman step. The most reliable way is to pay TurboTax fees upfront and have your refund sent directly from IRS to your bank.
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Kelsey Hawkins
This should be the top comment! So many people don't understand this process.
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