Has anyone else gotten this message? How can I figure out what’s going on? Your tax refund has been approved for direct deposit. However, it may be partially or completely reduced to pay a past due obligation, such as child support, another federal agency debt, or state income tax. If so, the Bureau of the Fiscal Service (BFS), who issues IRS refunds, will send you a notice with the amount of the debt and contact information. The details of the debt are not provided to the IRS. This application will be updated with the refund amount remaining, if any. after the debt is deducted If your refund is not credited to your account by February 16, 2022, please revisit this site or use our free mobile app. IRS2Go, for your revised refund status. Updates to refund status are made no more than once a day.

This message means BFS (Bureau of Fiscal Service) has identified that you owe money somewhere - could be child support, student loans, state taxes etc. They're gonna take what you owe from your refund before sending you whats left. You'll get a letter explaining exactly what debt they found and how much they're taking. I'd recommend checking out taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) - its an AI tool that can analyze your transcript and tell you exactly whats happening with your refund including any offsets. It'll breakdown the amounts and timeline so you know what to expect.

I found a way to solve reaching IRS human representatives, watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vm3V34wHDQ

Hello Allen:) I do have personal experience with this. My husband owed back pay for the State of Oklahoma Child Support Services. He got this very same message. What I can tell you is that you can call the Tax Offset Line at 1-800-304-3107 this is an automated system that will tell you if there is any offsets that would be preventing you from getting your full refund at this time. Good Luck! Let me know how it goes.

To all those having trouble reaching a human at the IRS. I just ran across this video that gave me a shortcut to reach a human. Hope it helps! https://youtu.be/wMf29SmRU-I

I went through this exact same situation last year! That message basically means the Treasury Offset Program found a debt in your name and they're going to take it from your refund before sending you what's left. The most common ones are unpaid student loans, child support, or state taxes. You should get a letter from BFS within a few weeks explaining exactly what debt they found and how much they're taking. In the meantime, you can call the Treasury Offset Program at 1-800-304-3107 to get automated info about any offsets on your SSN. Don't panic though - if there's anything left after they take what you owe, you'll still get that portion deposited!

This happened to me too! That message is basically the IRS giving you a heads up that Treasury Offset Program (TOP) found a debt associated with your SSN and they're going to intercept part or all of your refund to pay it. The frustrating part is they don't tell you exactly what the debt is in that message - you have to wait for the BFS letter or call that 1-800-304-3107 number others mentioned. In my case it was old unemployment overpayment from 2020 that I had completely forgotten about. The good news is if your refund is bigger than what you owe, you'll still get the difference. Just be patient - the whole process adds about 2-3 weeks to your normal refund timeline.

This is exactly what happened to my sister a few months ago! The waiting is the worst part because you have no idea how much they're taking until you get that BFS letter. In her case, it was for old state taxes she didn't even realize she still owed from when she moved between states. The automated line at 1-800-304-3107 that others mentioned is definitely worth calling - it'll at least tell you the total amount being offset and which type of debt it is. One tip: if you think the debt might be incorrect or already paid, you can dispute it, but you have to act fast once you get the official notice. The whole process took about 3 weeks total for her, but at least she got the remaining portion of her refund after they took what was owed. Hang in there!

I went through this exact same thing last year! That message is frustrating because it doesn't give you the details you really need. Here's what I learned: The Bureau of Fiscal Service runs something called the Treasury Offset Program that automatically checks for debts when your refund gets processed. Common culprits are student loans in default, back child support, state tax debt, or even unemployment overpayments. The automated hotline at 1-800-304-3107 is your best friend right now - it'll tell you the offset amount and what type of debt without having to wait for the letter. When I called, I found out it was for an old state tax bill I'd forgotten about from a previous move. The timeline is usually: offset happens → BFS letter gets mailed (takes 1-2 weeks) → remaining refund (if any) gets deposited. In my case, they took $800 of my $2,200 refund for the state debt, and I got the remaining $1,400 about 10 days after my original expected deposit date. One important thing - if you think the debt is wrong or already paid, you can dispute it, but you need to act quickly once you get the official notice. Keep all your paperwork handy just in case!