Strange IRS TREAS 310 deposit on card - related to NY unemployment tax refund?

That's definitely from the IRS. The '310' code specifically means it's a tax refund (as opposed to other IRS payments that have different codes). It could be from a few things: your regular tax refund, an adjustment to your taxes, or possibly related to unemployment benefits you received. Did you claim unemployment in 2024 and pay taxes on it?

This is most likely a tax adjustment refund. The IRS sometimes reviews returns and if they find you overpaid on taxes for unemployment benefits, they'll send automatic refunds. This happened on a large scale in 2021-2022, but they still do individual adjustments. Check your IRS account online or call them to confirm exactly what it's for. You can create an account at irs.gov to see your tax records.

I got something similar last month! Mine was also labeled IRS TREAS 310 TAX REF. When I called the IRS (after trying for THREE DAYS to get through), they told me it was because they readjusted something on my 2024 return related to the unemployment benefits I received. Apparently there was some tax law change that affected how unemployment is taxed, and they're processing adjustments automatically. Check the amount - does it match roughly 10-12% of your unemployment benefits? That would confirm it's probably a tax adjustment on your UI benefits.

I got one of these 2 weeks ago too!! But mine said something different like IRS TREAS 319 I think? I just spent it lol

After struggling with this EXACT situation last month, I finally figured out you can check what this payment is for by creating an account on the IRS website and looking at your tax records. Go to irs.gov, create an ID.me account if you don't have one (warning: this process is STUPIDLY complicated and takes forever), and then you can see all your tax records including why they sent you this payment. If you need to actually talk to someone at the IRS to figure this out, good luck with that. I tried for over a week and couldn't get through. Then someone told me about Claimyr.com which helped me get through to an agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting for hours or getting disconnected. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE - it's worth checking out if you're desperate to talk to someone.

Last year they adjusted my taxes from the previous year's unemployment without even telling me why!!! I just got a random deposit like yours and had to figure it out myself. The system is BROKEN. You shouldn't have to be a detective to figure out why the government sent you money!!! But yes, it's probably a tax adjustment for unemployment benefits. They're TERRIBLE at communicating these things.

To give you a bit more detail about why this happens: federal tax laws regarding unemployment benefits sometimes change, and the IRS makes retroactive adjustments. In some cases, certain amounts of unemployment benefits are excluded from taxable income, which results in these refunds. The IRS processes these automatically after reviewing returns, which is why you get these surprise deposits. You should receive a letter from the IRS within 2-3 weeks explaining the adjustment, though as others have mentioned, these letters aren't always clear. The deposit is legitimate and is yours to keep - it's not an error.

my brother got one of these and it was because of his student loans not unemployment just fyi

Update: I finally got through to someone at the IRS! You all were right - it was an adjustment to my 2024 taxes related to the unemployment benefits I received last year. Apparently there was some change in how they calculate the taxes on those benefits, and I overpaid. Thanks everyone for your help! For anyone else seeing these mysterious deposits, definitely check your tax transcript online or try calling the IRS to confirm what it's for.

I used that Claimyr service someone mentioned above and got through in about 30 minutes! Otherwise I think I would still be trying. The agent was really helpful and confirmed it was exactly what you all suggested - a tax adjustment for my unemployment benefits from 2024.