What does 'Payment Completed' mean in TurboTax but no refund yet?

I'm getting frustrated with TurboTax showing "Payment Completed" for over a week now, but still no sign of my refund. Last year when I filed through H&R Block, at least their status updates were clear about what stage my return was in. I've checked the WMR tool and it just shows the first bar, which tells me nothing useful. I know I'm entitled to clear information about MY money, especially since I filed back in early February. Has anyone else seen this TT status and know what it actually means? Is this just their way of saying they've submitted it to the IRS?

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12 comments

Nathaniel Stewart

Oh my goodness, this is actually causing a lot of confusion this tax season! I'm seeing this question almost daily now. The "Payment Completed" status in TurboTax simply means they've successfully transmitted your return to the IRS and received an acknowledgment - it has NOTHING to do with your actual refund payment! You need to check the IRS Where's My Refund tool or your tax transcript for the actual refund status. The IRS is currently experiencing significant delays, and many February filers are still waiting. I'd recommend checking your transcript TODAY if possible!

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- 17d

Debra Bai

I believe there might be a bit of confusion with the terminology. TurboTax's "Payment Completed" status typically refers to the payment for their tax preparation services being processed successfully, not your tax refund. It's possible that this is indicating your payment to TurboTax has been completed, while your actual tax return is still being processed by the IRS. Perhaps checking your account on the IRS website directly might provide more accurate information about your refund status?

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- 16d

Victoria Brown

As someone who's worked with tax software for years, I can tell you TurboTax's status messages are about as clear as mud sometimes! 😂 The "Payment Completed" just means they've processed your payment for their services, not anything about your actual refund status. I'd be cautious about relying on any status updates from the preparation software. If you want to really understand what's happening with your return, I'd recommend checking your actual tax transcript at https://taxr.ai - it can analyze all those confusing codes and tell you exactly where your return stands in the process and when you might expect your refund. Much more reliable than playing the TurboTax guessing game!

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- 14d

Samuel Robinson

Have you considered that TurboTax and the IRS operate on completely different systems? What if the status in TurboTax is just telling you that your payment to them for tax preparation services went through successfully? The IRS Where's My Refund tool showing the first bar means they've received your return, but it's still in the processing stage. Many returns are taking 6-8 weeks this year even without errors. Did you claim any credits like the Earned Income Credit or Child Tax Credit? Those tend to trigger additional review processes and extend the timeline significantly.

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- 12d

Camila Castillo

I'm sort of in the same boat, possibly, and was getting pretty anxious about my refund timing. I finally decided to just call the IRS directly to check what was happening, but couldn't get through after trying for literally days. Someone on another thread suggested using Claimyr (https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c) to get past the hold times, and I was honestly surprised it actually worked. Got connected to an agent in about 15 minutes who confirmed my return was just in normal processing with no issues flagged. Really appreciated getting that peace of mind rather than just staring at the vague TurboTax status!