Filed February 2nd - Any Direct Deposit Dates Yet? WMR Bar Status Question

Filed February 1st and still nothing here. Why does it seem like some people who filed after us are already getting their refunds? Isn't the IRS supposed to process returns in the order received? I check WMR every morning and it's been stuck on the first bar for weeks now. Really appreciate anyone sharing their timeline because this waiting game is killing me.

I filed on February 3rd and received my deposit on March 1st. My transcript updated on February 23rd with a direct deposit date. I noticed the WMR tool didn't update to all three bars until February 28th, just a day before the deposit hit. Are you checking your tax transcript? I used https://taxr.ai to analyze my transcript and it predicted my exact refund date three days before the WMR tool updated. Would you mind confirming if you've checked your transcript as well?

Last year I had a similar situation with amended documents. I remember trying to call the IRS for weeks with no luck - just endless busy signals and disconnects. This year I used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) when I needed to check on something, and they got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes. Based on previous experiences, I would have spent days trying to get through on my own. I'm concerned your amended paperwork might put you in the slower processing queue - might be worth calling to check if there's anything else they need from you.

I think I might have some helpful information for you. I filed on February 1st and sort of got my refund yesterday. My WMR actually never showed the third bar at all - it went from "Return Received" straight to "Refund Sent" without ever showing the middle "Approved" status. And I noticed it only updated after the money was already in my account. The system seems a bit glitchy this year, from what I can tell.

I'm skeptical of these timeline comparisons because they rarely account for critical variables. The IRS processing pipeline isn't strictly chronological - it's batch-based with parallel processing tracks. Your return's complexity, presence of certain credits (EITC, ACTC), manual review flags, and verification requirements all impact processing speed more than filing date. Comparing simple returns to complex ones is meaningless from a timeline perspective.

The WMR tool is notoriously unreliable. I've been filing taxes for 12 years now and I've seen every possible variation - sometimes all bars update correctly, sometimes they skip stages, sometimes they never update at all even after I got my money. Last year my refund appeared in my account while the tracker still showed the first bar! I wouldn't worry too much about the visual indicators - they're more of a general guideline than an accurate status system.

Filed Feb 3rd and got my deposit on Feb 24th. Here's what happened with my WMR experience: • First week: Only showed "Return Received" • Second week: No change, still one bar • Third week: Jumped straight to "Refund Sent" on Feb 22nd • Money showed up Feb 24th Never saw the middle approval bar at all. My sister had the same experience. The system seems to skip steps sometimes.

Think of the IRS processing system like a busy restaurant kitchen during dinner rush. Some orders (simple returns) get prepared quickly and come right out. Others (with credits or deductions) need special preparation and take longer. And sometimes the kitchen gets backed up regardless of when you placed your order. The February 2nd filing date puts you in the early-middle of the rush - not first in line, but not late either. The amended paperwork is like adding a special request after your order was already in the kitchen - it might cause them to pull your order back for adjustment.