Track refund progress 24/7
Use the refund status tool to get the most up-to-date information. The refund status graphic tracks a return’s progress through four stages.
You must file a return within three years of its original due date (often April 15), or any refund you’re owed for that return will expire. You should still file your tax return if it’s past the three-year limit, but we won’t be able to issue any refund.
Respond rapidly for faster refund
All income tax returns go through fraud detection reviews and accuracy checks before we issue any refunds. We might send you letters asking for more information.
Please respond quickly so we can review your information and get your refund to you as soon as possible.
- Fraud Detection: The Tax Commission uses a variety of methods to validate your identity and tax return to detect and combat tax identity theft. To help protect taxpayer information and keep taxpayer dollars from going to criminals, we might send you:
- An Identity Verification letter that asks you to take a short online quiz, provide copies of documents to verify your identity, or state that you didn’t file a return.
- A PIN letter that asks you to verify online whether you or someone you authorized filed the tax return we received.
- An Identity Verification letter that asks you to take a short online quiz, provide copies of documents to verify your identity, or state that you didn’t file a return.
- Accuracy Checks: We review all individual income tax returns each year for math errors or other errors. We find errors on about 25 percent of the returns. To be sure that your tax return correctly reflects your information and intent we might send you:
- A Request for Information letter that asks for missing or extra information to support data reported on the tax return.
- A Tax Computation Change letter that provides an explanation of changes that were made to the return.
- A Request for Information letter that asks for missing or extra information to support data reported on the tax return.
Speed up returns
- Review the return for accuracy before sending it.
- Verify that the correct address is on the return.
- Check for the correct Social Security numbers.
- Make sure W-2 information is correct when e-filing.
- Provide a driver’s license number when e-filing.
- Verify banking information when using direct deposit.
Understand typical refund time frames
- E-filers: You can expect your refund about seven to eight weeks after you receive an acknowledgment that we have your return.
- Paper filers: You can expect your refund about 10 to 11 weeks after we receive your return. We must manually enter information from paper returns into our database.
Exceptions
- First-time filers: It takes about three weeks to enter new filers into our system. Until that time, we’ll report your return as “not entered in system.” Add those three weeks to the estimates above to determine your refund timeline.
- If you received a letter from us asking for more information: Your refund will be delayed until we get the requested information. It will then take about six more weeks to finish the process.
More information
- If the Idaho Refund Status tool says your refund was mailed to you some time ago but you haven’t received it, contact Taxpayer Services for information on requesting a reissue of the check.
- If you think you may have been a victim of identity theft, check the resources on our Identity Theft page.
- Your refund could be seized to pay a debt with the IRS or another state agency.
- If you need help to prepare your tax return, check out the resources on the IRS website at Free Tax Return Preparation for Qualifying Taxpayers.