Where’s your refund?

By John Johnston
Managing Editor

There’s been so much in the news about economic stimulus payments, the IRS says that some taxpayers might need to be reminded that for those who’ve filed federal income tax returns, there’s an easy online way to check on its progress.
At the IRS website, www.irs.gov, is located the online tool “Where’s My Refund?”
Nearly 9.7 million taxpayers have checked the status of 2007 federal income tax refunds online, up about 18 percent over the same time period last year, said IRS spokesman Michael Dobzinski.
For those who’ve not yet checked, on the website you should be prepared to enter the following:

• Social Security number (or taxpayer identification number),
• Filing status (single, married filing joint return, married filing separate return, head of household, or qualifying widow(er)),
• Exact refund amount shown on the tax returns.

Taxpayers can check on the status of a refund seven days after e-filing a return, said Dobzinski. For those filing a paper return, check four to six weeks after mailing the return, he said.

“Where’s My Refund?” also includes links to customized information based on a taxpayer’s specific situation. For example if “Where’s My Refund?” shows that the IRS was unable to deliver a refund, a taxpayer can change his or her address online.
Taxpayers can also avoid undelivered refund checks by having refunds directly deposited into a personal checking or savings account.
If 28 days have passed after the IRS says it mailed a refund check, “Where’s My Refund?” enables taxpayers to initiate a trace.
Taxpayers without internet access can check the status of their refunds by calling the IRS TeleTax System at 800-829-4477 or the IRS Refund Hotline at 800-829-1954. The TeleTax refund information is updated each weekend. If you do not get a date for your refund, please wait until the next week before calling back.

For those without Internet access, calling the IRS TeleTax System at 800-829-4477 or the IRS Refund Hotline at 800-829-1954 can check status. The TeleTax refund information is updated each weekend. If you do not get a date for your refund, wait until the next week before calling back.
Dobzinki also warned that “some scam artists are sending phony emails, including those relating to “Where’s My Refund?”, to trick individuals into revealing personal financial information that can be used to access their financial accounts.”
“People who want to access the genuine IRS Web site and the “Where’s My Refund?” feature should go directly to the IRS Web site by typing the address, www.irs.gov, into the address` line of their Internet window.  The only genuine IRS Web site is IRS.gov,” Dobzinski said.

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