Facts About the PATH Act and Tax Refunds

Key takeaways

• The IRS is now accepting 2025 tax returns and TurboTax is open for e-filed returns
• Filing early and choosing direct helps get your refund as quickly as possible.
• Refunds that include EITC or ACTC may take longer

The 2026 tax filing season is officially underway. On January 26, 2026, the IRS began accepting and processing federal e-filed returns for the 2025 tax year — and TurboTax is accepting e-filed returns as well.

If getting your refund as quickly as possible is a priority, the IRS recommends filing as soon as you have the information you need and choosing e-file with direct deposit. In most cases, taxpayers who do so receive their refund within about 21 days, as long as there are no issues with the return. 

Why some refunds take longer

Under the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act, the IRS is required to hold refunds that include certain credits until additional verification is complete. This rule applies to refunds that include:

• The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
• The Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC)

Because of this requirement, the IRS cannot issue these refunds before mid-February.

For the 2026 tax season, The IRS has announced that taxpayers who claimed EITC or ACTC can generally expect their refunds by March 2, 2026, provided they filed online, chose direct deposit, and there were no issues with the return.

The PATH Act applies to all filing methods and is designed to prevent fraud by giving the IRS additional time to review certain credits before issuing refunds. To check the status of your refund at any time, you can use the IRS’s “Where’s My Refund?” tool.

Getting your refund faster with TurboTax

We know how important your refund is — and TurboTax offers options to help you access your money sooner.

Get your tax refund up to up to 5 days early* with TurboTax. You could get your tax refund up to 5 days early¹ in your own bank account for a fee, guaranteed² or or in a Credit Karma Money™ checking account** for no additional cost. Select the Up to 5 Days Early or Credit Karma Money deposit option when you’re ready to finish and file withTurboTax. 
And if you’d rather not worry about the details, TurboTax can guide you through the deductions and credits you’re eligible for — or connect you to a TurboTax Experts tax expert can handle your taxes from start to finish.

Disclaimers:

Money movement services are provided by Intuit Payments Inc., licensed as a Money Transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services. For more information about Intuit Payments’ money transmission licenses, please visit https://www.intuit.com/legal/licenses/payment-licenses/. 

*If you choose to pay your tax preparation fee with TurboTax using your federal tax refund or if you choose to take the Refund Advance loan, you will not be eligible to receive your refund up to 5 days early. The 5-day early program may change or be discontinued at any time. Up to 5 days early access to your federal tax refund is compared to standard tax refund electronic deposit and is dependent on and subject to IRS submitting refund information to the bank before release date. The IRS may not submit refund information early.

**Credit Karma is not a bank. Banking services for Credit Karma Money accounts are provided by MVB Bank, Inc., Member FDIC. Maximum balance and transfer limits apply per account. 

1 – 5 Days Early to Your Bank Account: Personal taxes only. Your federal tax refund will be deposited to your selected bank account 5 days before the refund settlement date provided by the IRS (the date your refund would have arrived if sent from the IRS directly). The receipt of your refund 5 Days Early is subject to IRS submitting refund information to us at least 5 days before the refund settlement date. IRS does not always provide refund settlement information 5 days early. You will not be eligible to receive your refund 5 Days Early if (1) you take a Refund Advance loan, (2) IRS delays payment of your refund, or (3) your bank’s policies do not allow for same-day payment processing. 5 Days Early fee will be deducted directly from your refund prior to being deposited to your bank account. If your refund cannot be delivered 5 Days Early, you will not be charged the 5 Days Early fee. 5 Days Early program may change or be discontinued at any time. 

2 – If your federal refund is deposited into your selected bank account less than 5 days before the IRS refund settlement date (the date it would have arrived if sent from the IRS directly), then you will not pay the 5 Days Early fee. See Terms of Service for more details.