Courtesy of the IRS
[TaxMama Note: When using Direct Deposit be sure to TRIPLE check your bank account numbers. If you make one tiny mistake, with just one digit, someone else will get your refund. And the IRS will not help you get it back.]
Direct deposit is the fast, easy and safe way to receive your tax refund. Whether you file electronically or on paper, direct deposit gives you access to your refund faster than a paper check.
Here are four reasons more than 80 million taxpayers chose direct deposit in 2012:
1. Security. Every year the U.S. Postal Service returns thousands of paper checks to the IRS as undeliverable. Direct deposit eliminates the possibility of a lost, stolen or undeliverable refund check.
2. Convenience. With direct deposit, the money goes directly into your bank account. You will not have to make a special trip to the bank to deposit the money yourself.
3. Ease. It’s easy to choose direct deposit. When you are preparing your tax return, simply follow the instructions on the tax return or in the tax software. Make sure you enter the correct bank account and bank routing transit numbers.
4. Options. You can deposit your refund into more than one account. With the split refund option, taxpayers can divide their refunds among as many as three checking or savings accounts and up to three different U.S. financial institutions. Use IRS Form 8888, Allocation of Refund (Including Savings Bond Purchases), to divide your refund. If you are designating part of your refund to pay your tax preparer, you should not use Form 8888. You should only deposit your refund directly into accounts that are in your own name, your spouse’s name or both if it’s a joint account.
Some banks require both spouses’ names on the account to deposit a tax refund from a joint return. Check with your bank for their direct deposit requirements.
Check the instructions in your tax form for more information about direct deposit and the split refund option. Helpful tips on both are also available in IRS Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax. Publication 17 and IRS Form 8888 are available on IRS.gov or by calling the IRS at 1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676).
Additional IRS Resources:
- Form 8888, Allocation of Refund (including Savings Bonds Purchases)
- Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax
- What to Expect for Refunds in 2013
IRS YouTube Videos:
Wow, that turned out well.
I wonder if what happened was that the routing number made no sense.
If it went to a non-existent bank because one digit was wrong, the IRS wouldn’t be able to make the deposit.
I still don’t know what bank it is and I’m not sure the process of how this happened but my brother received a cashier’s check today with his refund and a letter stating that since he had the wrong bank account information they were sending a check. I let him know how EXTREMELY lucky he was.
Oh my goodness.
Eden, that’s a wonderful bank.
Have your brother get a copy of whatever paperwork the bank has showing where they sent the refund. Then he can contact IRS to retrieve it.
Who IS that bank?
That’s the first time I’ve heard a bank do something as sensible as this.
Generally, they have let the refund get deposited. Then the IRS has no power or authority to get it back.
Hugs
Eva
Ironically, my brother (who did not use me to do his taxes) called me today for help with his refund. He got the email stating the money was being transferred but he hadn’t seen the deposit in his bank account. He was worried he messed up his account information. I told him to look at his tax return and check to make sure it was correct. He had the wrong routing number; so he called TurboTax for help. That didn’t work so he looked up the routing number online and found the bank to which it belonged and called them. They had recognized that the transfer did not belong to any of their members so they sent it back to the IRS. So if the IRS won’t help a taxpayer recover their refund from the wrong account, what about recovering it from the IRS?