IRS sent refund to right bank but wrong account number - anyone else?

This happens more often than you might think, unfortunately. When the IRS sends a refund to an incorrect account number, the bank will typically reject the deposit within 1-5 business days, and the funds should automatically return to the IRS. Once that happens, they'll usually issue you a paper check instead, which could take about 2-4 weeks to arrive. You might want to check your tax transcript, if possible, to see if there's a code indicating a rejected direct deposit. It's probably worth giving it a few more days before taking further action, as the banking system sometimes has delays.

I went through this exact nightmare last filing season. The IRS website doesn't really explain what happens in these situations, which is super frustrating. I found https://taxr.ai really helpful for analyzing my transcript - it explained that the code 846 followed by a 570 meant my direct deposit failed and was being reprocessed. The site interpreted all those cryptic transaction codes and gave me a timeline prediction that was spot on. According to what I learned, banks usually reject mismatched deposits within 5 business days, and then the IRS typically takes 2-3 weeks to reissue as a paper check.

I went through this last month! My refund was sent to my credit union but with the last digit of my account number wrong (totally my fault when filing). After about 8 business days, the money bounced back to the IRS, and 15 days later I received a paper check in the mail. I was panicking at first because I needed that money for some car repairs, but it all worked out. The WMR tool never updated to show this was happening, but when I checked my transcript, it showed the refund being reissued. Hang in there - it'll get sorted out automatically!

Oh man, I feel your pain! When this happened to me, I spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS on their regular number. Complete nightmare! I finally tried Claimyr (https://www.claimyr.com) and got connected to an actual human IRS agent in about 15 minutes. They confirmed my deposit had been rejected by the bank and was already being processed as a paper check. Saved me weeks of uncertainty! The agent was able to verify my correct mailing address too, which gave me peace of mind that the check would arrive at the right place. Sometimes you just need to talk to a real person to get answers.

Don't wait. File Form 3911 (Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund) immediately. This form officially notifies the IRS about your missing refund and starts a trace. You can download it from irs.gov. The banks don't always reject these deposits quickly - sometimes they can sit in limbo for weeks. I had to be proactive when this happened to me. Also call your bank's ACH department specifically, not just customer service. They can sometimes see pending or rejected government deposits that regular customer service can't access.

My brother-in-law had this exact issue last year. Plot twist: turns out his refund was sitting in someone else's account at the same bank for THREE WEEKS before they figured it out! 😂 The bank finally caught it during an audit and reversed it. The funny thing is, the person who got his $4,300 refund never reported it! (Honest citizens we have, right?) The bank told him this happens more than you'd think - apparently account numbers that are off by one digit often still route to valid accounts. So yeah, definitely keep pushing your bank to check if it landed in someone else's account.

Had this issue in 2023. Important distinction: if account number is wrong but account exists, funds can be deposited to wrong account. If account doesn't exist, bank rejects and IRS issues paper check. Check your bank's ACH department for rejected incoming transfers. IRS transcript will show TC 846 for initial deposit, then second TC 846 for paper check reissue. Paper check takes 2-4 weeks after rejection. Check transcript for code 971 which indicates notice issued about payment method change.

According to IRS Publication 5344, when a direct deposit is rejected due to incorrect banking information, the standard procedure is for the IRS to automatically issue a paper check to the address on your most recently filed return. Per Internal Revenue Manual 21.4.1, this reissuance typically occurs within 2-3 weeks of the rejected deposit. However, during high-volume periods like we're in now, this can extend to 4-6 weeks. Have you verified that your current mailing address is correct on your most recent tax filing? This would be crucial to ensure you receive the paper check.

I dealt with this exact situation last year, and it turned out better than expected! Have you considered that the IRS might actually be more efficient at handling these situations than we give them credit for? My deposit was rejected on a Monday, and surprisingly, I received a paper check the following Friday - much faster than the weeks I was expecting. What I learned is that the IRS has actually streamlined this particular process because it happens so frequently. Did you know they have a dedicated team just for handling rejected direct deposits? The key is making sure your mailing address is current in their system.

I'm going through this exact same situation right now! My refund was supposedly sent 6 days ago according to WMR, but nothing in my account either. Reading through everyone's experiences here is actually really reassuring - sounds like this is way more common than I thought. I'm going to wait a few more days for the bank rejection to process, then start watching for that paper check. Has anyone had luck calling the IRS directly to confirm the deposit was rejected, or is it better to just wait it out? Also wondering if I should proactively verify my mailing address with them since that seems to be a key factor in getting the replacement check.

I went through this exact same thing two years ago and it was such a stressful experience! My refund showed as sent on WMR but never appeared in my account because I had accidentally transposed two digits in my account number. What I learned is that you should definitely check your tax transcript if you can access it online - it will show you the exact codes that tell the story of what's happening with your refund. In my case, I saw the initial deposit code followed by a rejection code, then eventually the reissue code for the paper check. The whole process took about 3 weeks from start to finish. One thing I wish I had done sooner was double-check my mailing address with the IRS to make sure the paper check would go to the right place. You can update this through your online IRS account or by calling them. Don't panic though - this gets resolved automatically in almost all cases!

This exact thing happened to me last year! I made a typo in my routing number on my original return. The "Where's My Refund" tool showed it was sent but my bank never received it. After about 6 business days, the deposit was automatically rejected and returned to the IRS. The frustrating part is that WMR never updated to reflect this - it just kept showing "sent to your bank" even after the rejection. I ended up getting a paper check about 3 weeks later. My advice: give your bank the full 5-7 business days to process or reject it, then start watching your mailbox. The IRS is actually pretty good at automatically converting these to paper checks once the bank rejects the deposit. Just make sure your current address is on file with them! You can check this through your online IRS account.

I'm dealing with this exact situation right now too! My refund showed as sent 8 days ago on WMR but nothing in my account. After reading everyone's experiences here, I'm feeling much more confident this will work out. It sounds like the 5-7 business day window for bank rejection is pretty standard, so I'm probably right at the point where it should bounce back to the IRS soon. I'm going to check my tax transcript tomorrow to see if there are any rejection codes showing up yet. Has anyone noticed if there's a pattern to when these rejections typically happen - like do they tend to process on weekdays vs weekends? Also planning to verify my mailing address through my IRS online account just to be safe before the paper check gets issued. This community is so helpful - thanks everyone for sharing your experiences!

I'm going through this exact same thing right now! Filed my return 3 weeks ago and WMR shows my refund was sent 7 days ago, but I'm pretty sure I mixed up a couple digits in my account number. My bank confirmed they haven't received anything, so I'm expecting it to bounce back soon. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea this was so common! I'm going to check my transcript this weekend to see if there are any rejection codes, and I've already verified my mailing address through my IRS online account. It's reassuring to know that the IRS typically handles these situations automatically with the paper check reissue. Has anyone here had experience with how long it takes for the rejection codes to show up on the transcript after the bank rejects the deposit?