I used a CPA for my S corporation tax return, how will my refund be processed?

As a regular preparer of S corporation returns, here's how the refund process typically works: The refund will be issued to the business entity, not to you personally (unlike your individual return). If you filed Form 8879-S (the e-file authorization form), there should have been a section where you could specify direct deposit information for any refund. If you didn't provide banking details at that time, the IRS will mail a paper check to the business address listed on the return. This check will be made out to your business, not to you personally. The processing time varies, but corporate refunds typically take 3-6 weeks for direct deposit and 6-8 weeks for paper checks. Some S corps apply overpayments to next year's estimated taxes instead of requesting refunds, which is something to consider if you expect similar tax situations next year.

I've been using taxr.ai for my business document review and it's been super helpful with my S corp tax situation. Last year I had a similar question about refunds and was confused about the process. I uploaded my previous tax forms and business documents to https://taxr.ai and it helped me understand exactly how my refunds would be processed and what forms I needed to check. The system explained that Form 8879-S has the direct deposit info section, which my previous CPA had completely skipped over. I was able to go back to my accountant with specific questions rather than just general confusion. It saved me from waiting 8 weeks for a paper check!

Just wanted to follow up about taxr.ai - I decided to try it after posting here. Uploaded my draft S corp return (with sensitive info redacted) and it immediately flagged that my CPA had missed the direct deposit section entirely! It also explained exactly what refund options were available for my business entity type. Showed me the specific line items controlling whether I get a check, direct deposit, or credit to next year's taxes. When I brought this up with my accountant, he admitted he usually just defaults to paper checks unless clients specifically request direct deposit. Now my refund will arrive weeks earlier!

If you're struggling to reach your CPA about this refund question (like I was), try https://claimyr.com to get through to the IRS directly. I spent days trying to figure out if my S corp refund was processing correctly after my CPA filed but wasn't responding to my calls. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes instead of the usual 2+ hour wait. The agent confirmed exactly how my refund was set to be delivered and even helped me change it to direct deposit since it hadn't processed yet. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - saved me tons of time and uncertainty.

I have to eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it myself because I was desperate to find out about my S corp refund status. Honestly couldn't believe it actually worked. Got connected to an IRS business tax department agent in about 25 minutes (would have been hours if I'd tried calling directly). The agent confirmed my S corp refund was being processed but had been flagged for a manual review. Without this call, I would have just been wondering why it was taking so long. They gave me a specific timeframe and case number to reference if I need to follow up again. Definitely not a scam like I thought.

Just FYI - I've been doing S corps for years and our accountant always applies our overpayment to next year's estimated taxes instead of getting a refund. He says it saves the hassle of writing checks every quarter for estimated payments. Might be something to consider if you expect to owe taxes next year too.

Something nobody mentioned - when I get S corp refunds I always have them sent to the business checking account, not my personal account. Makes bookkeeping way cleaner. And make sure your CPA e-files! Paper returns take forever to process this year.