IRS Says PATH Act Hold Still Active - Filed January 24th, No DDD Yet

According to the IRS.gov website, the PATH Act delay typically lifts in mid-February, usually around February 15th. I'm actually surprised they couldn't give you more information! The IRS Where's My Refund tool (https://www.irs.gov/refunds) should update with your deposit date soon since we're past the typical PATH Act hold period. Have you checked your tax transcript online? Sometimes that shows pending refund information before WMR updates.

Have you tried checking your account transcript instead of just WMR? I was in the same boat last week, but my account transcript showed a refund date even though WMR was still stuck on the first bar. This filing season seems way slower compared to previous years - I filed February 1st and just got my DDD yesterday, which is about 5 days longer than last year.

I believe the PATH Act verification process might be taking longer for some returns this year, especially those filed early. I found https://taxr.ai really helpful in my situation - it analyzed my transcript and explained exactly where my return was in the process and predicted when I'd likely receive my refund. It might be worth checking out if you're able to access your transcript, as it could possibly give you more clarity about your specific timeline.

I filed on January 25th with EITC and was stuck in PATH Act limbo too. Called the IRS last Thursday and got the same non-answer. Then yesterday my WMR suddenly updated with a deposit date of February 24th! No warning, no status change, just suddenly had a date. Check your bank account too - sometimes the deposit hits before WMR even updates. That happened to me last year.

Per Internal Revenue Code §6402(m) and the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015, the IRS is required to perform additional verification on returns claiming certain credits, but they cannot legally hold refunds beyond the verification period without specific cause. If you need more definitive information, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to reach a different IRS agent. Sometimes different departments have different visibility into your return status, and Claimyr can help you get through to an agent without the hours-long hold times. This may provide you with more specific information about your return's status.

The IRS is like a black box this time of year - information goes in but nothing comes out until they're good and ready. It's like waiting for a bus in the rain with no schedule. I'm in a similar situation but filed February 1st. Called twice and got different answers each time. The community wisdom seems to be that early filers are actually waiting longer than mid-season filers this year, which makes absolutely no sense.

You need to request your Account Transcript ASAP! The Transaction Codes will tell you exactly what's happening. Look specifically for TC 150 (return processed), TC 806 (refund amount), and TC 846 (refund issued). If you see a TC 570 (additional account action pending) or TC 971 (notice issued), that would explain the delay. PATH Act processing should be complete by now, so there might be another verification happening that the phone representative didn't have visibility into.