TurboTax 5-Day Early Refund - DDD Feb 23 But No Money Yet?
Just got my transcript updated with a DDD of Feb. 23. Filed through TurboTax and signed up for their 5-day early refund option. Shouldn't I have my money by now? The TT progress bar still shows 'accepted' and when I check SBTPG it says 'account not found.' Called TT about the 5-day early option and they basically said if I don't get the refund by 5:00 pm today, I should expect it on the actual DDD (Feb. 23). Is this normal? Has anyone else with the same DDD and 5-day early option actually received their refund yet? My husband's deployment is coming up and we need to get some things squared away before he leaves.
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Yuki Kobayashi
The 5-day early refund option through TurboTax is actually a bit misleading. What they're offering is essentially a loan that gets repaid when your actual refund arrives. As of February 19th, many people with February 23rd DDDs are still waiting. The SBTPG (Santa Barbara Tax Products Group) is TurboTax's banking partner that handles these transactions, and their systems often don't update until they actually receive the funds from the IRS. The "account not found" message typically means they haven't received your refund from the IRS yet to process.
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Carmen Vega
ā¢So basically TT is just fronting the $$ as a loan? Is there any advantage to this if they don't actually get it to us early? Seems like false advertising tbh.
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QuantumQuester
ā¢I've been through this exact scenario. According to IRS Publication 1345 (Rev. 1-2023), third-party facilitators like SBTPG are required to disburse funds within 24 hours of receipt from the IRS. However, their systems often don't show the account until literally the moment they receive the funds. Last year my DDD was March 1, SBTPG showed "account not found" until February 28 at 9pm, then suddenly updated and I had my deposit by midnight.
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Andre Moreau
I'm in the same boat with a Feb 23 DDD and the TT early option. SBTPG has been showing "account not found" for days now which is stressing me out because I've got bills due. From what I understand, the TPG (Tax Product Group) has to receive your refund from the IRS first, then they take out their fees, and then they forward the remainder to you. The "early" option is basically them fronting you the money before they actually get it from the IRS, but it seems like they're not actually doing that in many cases.
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Zoe Stavros
I went through this last week with a Feb 16 DDD. The whole "5-day early" thing is more like "maybe early, if we feel like it" š. Here's what happened to me: SBTPG showed "account not found" until literally the night before my DDD, then suddenly updated to "funded" and I got my deposit a few hours later. So technically I got it one day early, not five. From what I've gathered, they're super cautious about issuing these advances and only do it when they're 100% sure your refund is coming.
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Jamal Harris
ā¢This is exactly what happened with my refund too! I kept checking WMR, TurboTax, and the SBTPG website every few hours. The SBTPG site finally showed my account the evening before my DDD, and the money hit my bank around midnight. I found this Reddit thread from last year that explains how SBTPG works: they don't even create your account in their system until they receive confirmation from the IRS that your refund is being sent.
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Mei Chen
ā¢Same experience here with my refund last week: ā¢ DDD of Feb 16 ā¢ SBTPG showed "account not found" until Feb 15 evening ā¢ Money appeared in my account early morning Feb 16 ā¢ TurboTax progress bar never updated past "accepted" The 5-day early thing seems like marketing more than reality. I'm wondering if they only do the early advance for certain customers based on credit or refund amount?
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Liam Sullivan
I've seen this same pattern the past three tax seasons. Back in 2022, I had a similar issue and spent days trying to reach TurboTax customer service without luck. Eventually used Claimyr (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) to get through to an actual IRS agent who confirmed my refund was scheduled correctly but hadn't been sent to SBTPG yet. The agent explained that the IRS sends batch payments to these third-party processors, and sometimes your particular batch gets delayed. At least speaking with the IRS gave me peace of mind that nothing was wrong with my return.
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Amara Okafor
ā¢Wait, you can actually get through to a real IRS person? It's like trying to get backstage at a concert - seems impossible without connections. Is this Claimyr thing actually legit? I tried calling the IRS about my refund last year and gave up after being on hold for 2 hours, it was like being stuck in quicksand with hold music.
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CosmicCommander
ā¢It works. Used it last year. Not cheap. But saved me days of redial attempts. They navigate the phone tree for you. Then call when agent is ready. No magic access. Just automation of the painful parts.
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Giovanni Colombo
I had the exact same situation last week! My DDD was Feb 16, and I also did the TurboTax 5-day early thing. For me, SBTPG showed "account not found" right up until Feb 15 around 7pm. Then suddenly it showed my account with status "funded" and the money hit my bank account around 3am on Feb 16. So I technically got it a few hours early, not 5 days early. From what I've gathered talking to others, the TurboTax 5-day early is more of a "up to 5 days early" situation, and most people get it 0-1 days early. I think they're just being cautious about when they release the funds.
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Fatima Al-Qasimi
ā¢Did your TurboTax status bar ever update past the "accepted" stage? Mine has been stuck there for over a week now, even though WMR shows approved with DDD. Just want to confirm if this is the normal experience with their system.
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Dylan Cooper
Oh my gosh, I'm so stressed about this too! š« I also have a Feb 23 DDD and signed up for the TurboTax early refund thing. I've been checking SBTPG literally every hour and still getting "account not found." I've prepared all my bills and budgeting based on getting this money today or tomorrow. Does anyone know if there's a specific time of day when SBTPG typically updates their system? I'm wondering if I should just keep refreshing or if there are set times when they process batches?
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Sofia Ramirez
ā¢Did you check if your bank might be holding the deposit? My credit union sometimes holds tax refunds for 24 hours even after they receive them. When did your WMR status change to approved with a DDD? I found my SBTPG account appeared about 30 hours after WMR updated with my DDD.
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Dmitry Volkov
I think... there might be a delay with SBTPG processing right now. My DDD is also Feb 23, and I'm still seeing "account not found" as of a few minutes ago. Last year, my account appeared in their system about 48 hours before my DDD, so this seems unusual. Perhaps they're experiencing higher volume? I'm hesitant to call TurboTax again since they weren't very helpful the first time.
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StarSeeker
I've been tracking this issue for several tax seasons now, and there's actually a pattern to how SBTPG handles these early refunds. In most cases, they seem to wait until they have confirmation from the IRS that your refund is actually being sent before they create your account in their system. For February DDDs, they typically receive batch confirmations from the IRS 24-48 hours before the official DDD, which is why many people see their accounts appear in SBTPG's system the day before their DDD. The "up to 5 days early" is technically possible, but in practice, it seems to happen rarely and might depend on your filing history, refund amount, or other factors that SBTPG uses to assess risk. I would expect your account to appear in their system by tomorrow evening.
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