Missing Refund - Direct Deposit Date Passed with SBTPG Trace Number But No Money

This is, unfortunately, something that seems to be happening quite frequently this tax season. When SBTPG has generated a trace number, it generally means they've processed the refund and attempted to forward it to the bank account, but something may have possibly gone wrong in the transfer process. Your cousin might want to contact SBTPG directly at 800-901-6663, as they should be able to provide some information about where the money currently is in the process. Additionally, it might be worth checking if perhaps the account information was possibly entered incorrectly during filing.

I experienced this exact situation last year with a TPG (Third-Party Processor) delay. The critical issue is determining whether the funds are still with SBTPG or if they were rejected by Wells Fargo after transmission. In my case, the ACH transfer was initiated but rejected due to an account verification issue, which required SBTPG to reprocess the payment. The trace number indicates SBTPG has initiated the deposit process, but doesn't guarantee successful completion of the transfer to the financial institution.

According to IRS Publication 1345 (Rev. 01-2023), when a refund is processed through a third-party processor like SBTPG and doesn't reach the taxpayer's account within 5 business days of the DDD, the taxpayer has the right to request status information. I spent 3 days trying to reach SBTPG's customer service before giving up and using Claimyr to connect with the IRS (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c). Got through in about 15 minutes and they confirmed the refund had been sent to SBTPG but hadn't been forwarded to Wells Fargo yet. With that information, SBTPG finally took my case seriously.

OMG this is so frustrating when it happens! Your cousin should definitely check their tax prep software account too! Sometimes there are messages there about refund status that don't show up anywhere else. I've also seen cases where the refund card option was accidentally selected instead of direct deposit, and the money is sitting on a card that's being mailed! Worth checking every possibility!

Based on the IRS refund processing guidelines I've found online, when a trace number has been assigned but funds haven't appeared, it typically indicates the refund is in the final stage of processing. According to https://taxr.ai, which I used to interpret my transcript codes when I had a similar issue, this could mean several things: (1) the bank is holding the funds for verification, (2) there was a mismatch in account information, or (3) SBTPG is waiting for final confirmation from the IRS. The taxr.ai tool was helpful in explaining that the trace number actually indicates the refund has left IRS systems, so the issue is definitely with either SBTPG or Wells Fargo at this point.

Last year I had the EXACT same problem with SBTPG and Chase. DDD was 3/15, they took their fees, had a trace number, but no deposit until 3/23! I called SBTPG every single day. What finally worked was asking specifically for a "deposit status update" and mentioning the words "trace number verification." When I used those exact terms, they escalated me to someone who could see that they had attempted the deposit but there was a name mismatch between the tax return and the bank account (my married name vs. maiden name). They had to manually override and reprocess! Your cousin needs to call TODAY because they only have a 30-day window to resolve before it gets much more complicated!

I've seen this happen with SBTPG specifically when tax preparation fees are taken out of the refund. Did your cousin use a tax preparation service that deducted their fees directly from the refund? Sometimes SBTPG holds funds for additional verification when the refund amount is different than expected. Has your cousin checked if the refund amount matches what was calculated on their tax return, minus the preparation fees?

When dealing with missing refunds that have passed their direct deposit date, here's what experienced filers in our community recommend: 1. First, contact SBTPG directly at 800-901-6663 2. Have your filing information ready, including the trace number 3. Ask specifically about the status of the funds transfer to Wells Fargo 4. If SBTPG claims the transfer was completed, contact Wells Fargo next 5. Request Wells Fargo to search for pending/rejected ACH transfers 6. If neither can resolve it within 5 business days, file Form 3911 (Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund) The trace number is actually good news - it means the IRS successfully sent the money to SBTPG, so this is almost certainly a processing issue between SBTPG and Wells Fargo.

I want to warn everyone about something that happened to me with SBTPG that was terrifying: • Had a trace number and DDD but no deposit for 3 weeks • Called SBTPG multiple times with no resolution • Finally discovered they had CLOSED my case due to "inactivity" • They claimed they sent emails requesting verification (I never received any) • Had to submit multiple forms to reopen the case • Took another 14 days to finally get my refund • They never admitted any error on their part The technical issue was that their system flagged my account for "unusual activity" but their notification system failed to alert me. Make sure your cousin stays on top of this daily!

I had this exact issue on February 8th, 2023. My DDD was 02/08/2023, SBTPG had taken their fees, and I had a trace number, but no deposit hit my account. After calling Wells Fargo on February 10th, 2023, they confirmed no pending deposits had been rejected. I then called SBTPG on February 13th, 2023, and after escalating to a supervisor, they discovered the ACH transfer had failed due to a system error on their end. They reprocessed it that same day, and I received my funds on February 15th, 2023. The key was getting to a supervisor at SBTPG who could actually see the failed transfer details and manually reprocess it.