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<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe IRS has released updated federal income tax brackets and standard deductions for the 2026 tax year, which will apply to returns filed in 2027.<\/p>\n
Cheddar<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Tax refunds are expected to be huge<\/a> this year, so many Americans may want to know the fastest way to get their hands on theirs is by free, electronic direct deposit.<\/p>\n Every year, tax refunds mark the biggest payday of the year for millions of Americans. Typically, 75% of Americans receive refunds each year.\u00a0The\u00a0average refund<\/a>\u00a0in 2025 was $2,939, IRS data showed. This year, refunds could be as much as 30% more due to new provisions from President Donald Trump<\/a>‘s mega tax and spending bill<\/a>, according to James Knightley,chief international economist at Dutch bank ING.<\/p>\n Nine out of 10 taxpayers already receive their refunds through direct deposit, but the IRS wants to push that number higher because it’s the fastest and safest way to receive government payments. The IRS started phasing out paper checks for individual taxpayers last Sept. 30.<\/p>\n “Paper checks are over 16 times more likely to be lost, stolen, altered, or delayed than electronic payments,” the IRS said. “Direct deposit also avoids the possibility that a refund check could be returned to the IRS as undeliverable.”<\/p>\n You can even speed things up more. “Combining direct deposit with electronic filing is the fastest way to receive your refund,” the IRS said.<\/p>\n Select direct deposit as your refund method and type in the account number and routing number of your bank account. You can find the\u00a0routing number, which identifies the location of the bank\u2019s branch<\/a>,\u00a0on\u00a0the bottom left corner of your\u00a0checks or on your bank\u2019s website. Your account number\u00a0is on the bottom right corner of your checks, or you can sign into your online banking account or call your bank branch.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Tell your pro you want direct deposit. They should know what to do.<\/p>\n Make sure you mark direct deposit on your return and include your information.\u00a0Always double-check your entry to avoid mistakes and delays. If you\u2019ve missed a number on your account or routing number, the IRS may send you a paper check.<\/p>\n Find a bank through the\u00a0FDIC website<\/a>\u00a0or the National Credit Union Administration using their\u00a0Credit Union Locator Tool<\/a>. Usually, people can open a bank account<\/a> pretty quickly. You can also ask your preparer if they offer other electronic payment options.\u00a0<\/p>\n Otherwise, you might be able to deposit your refund onto a reloadable prepaid debit card or mobile app. Many reloadable prepaid cards and mobile apps have routing and account numbers, which may be different from the card number. Check with your financial institution to make sure your card or app can receive the deposit and double-check the routing and account numbers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yes. Since refunds are expected to be larger than usual, splitting a refund can be a convenient way to manage your money. You can send some of your refund to an account for immediate use and some for future savings.\u00a0<\/p>\n You can use your tax software to do it electronically or use\u00a0IRS\u00a0Form 8888, Allocation of Refund<\/a>\u00a0if you file a paper return. \u00a0<\/p>\n You can split your refund, in any proportion you want, and direct deposit funds in up to three different accounts with U.S. financial institutions, reloadable prepaid debit cards, or mobile apps.<\/p>\n Your refund\u00a0can only be deposited directly into a U.S. or U.S.-affiliated account in your name, your spouse\u2019s name, or both\u00a0if it\u2019s a joint account. No more than three electronic refunds can be deposited into a single financial account or prepaid debit card.<\/p>\n Most refunds are issued in less than 21 days\u00a0for taxpayers who filed electronically and chose direct deposit.<\/p>\n Through the IRS “Where’s My Refund<\/a>” tool, you can track when the IRS received your tax return, when it approved a refund and when it issued the refund. The money should land in your account within five days from the date the IRS approves your refund.<\/p>\n If you mailed a paper return and expect a refund, it could take four weeks or more to process your return, the IRS said.<\/p>\n If you claimed the\u00a0Earned Income Tax Credit<\/a>\u00a0or the Additional Child Tax Credit, the IRS\u00a0by law<\/a>\u00a0can’t issue those refunds before mid-February. It said it expects most EITC\/Additional CTC-related refunds for\u00a0early filers<\/a>\u00a0to be available in taxpayer bank accounts or on debit cards by March 3, if they chose direct deposit and there are no other issues with the tax return.<\/p>\n Yes. No matter whether you choose to receive a paper check or direct deposit into a single account or three accounts, you can use the “Where\u2019s My Refund?<\/a>”\u00a0feature on\u00a0the IRS website or call 800-829-1954.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n You can check the status of your income tax refund 24 hours after e-filing or after four weeks if you filed by paper. Information is updated once a day, overnight. You\u2019ll need your Social Security or taxpayer ID number, filing status and exact refund amount on your return.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you split your refund, “Where\u2019s My Refund?” will include a message confirming that your refund was split but\u00a0won\u2019t specify the amount deposited into each account. It\u2019ll tell you the estimated date of the deposits and, if the IRS adjusted the amount of your refund for math errors or other reasons, it\u2019ll tell you the amount of the adjustment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Medora Lee is a money, markets and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at\u00a0mjlee@usatoday.com<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter<\/a>\u00a0for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n IRS releases updated tax brackets for 2026 The IRS has released updated federal income tax brackets and standard deductions for the 2026 tax year, which will apply to returns filed in 2027. Cheddar Tax refunds are expected to be huge this year, so many Americans may want to know the fastest way to get their … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18275,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Tax-refunds-are-expected-to-be-huge-this-year-How.JPG","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18274"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18274\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18276,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18274\/revisions\/18276"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How do you sign up for direct deposit?<\/h2>\n
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What if I don\u2019t have a bank account?\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Can I split my refund into different accounts?\u00a0<\/h2>\n
How long does it take to get your tax refund by direct deposit?<\/h2>\n
Can I track my refund?\u00a0<\/h2>\n
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