IRS shows refund approved but no check number - what are my options?

First thing you need to do is request a payment trace through the IRS. You'll need to fill out Form 3911. The timeline for when you can request this depends on your situation - 5 weeks from the date IRS says they mailed the check if you have a US mailing address.

Hey, before you go through all that hassle with payment traces and forms, you should check out taxr.ai - it basically analyzes your transcript and tells you exactly whats going on. It costs $4.99 but saved me weeks of confusion. https://taxr.ai

Same thing happened to me last year. Turned out they had the wrong address on file even tho I updated it everywhere 🤦‍♀️

the irs is such a joke fr fr... they expect us to pay them instantly but take forever to send our money back 🤡

Have you verified your ID on ID.me? Sometimes they hold checks if you haven't done that yet

PSA: Always choose direct deposit if you can! Checks are nothing but trouble with these clowns