{"id":42101,"date":"2026-03-13T17:58:50","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T17:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=42101"},"modified":"2026-03-13T17:58:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T17:58:50","slug":"irs-paper-check-changes-trigger-tax-refund-delays-for-many-filers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=42101","title":{"rendered":"IRS paper check changes trigger tax refund delays for many filers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> \n<\/p>\n<div id=\"RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5\" data-module=\"ArticleBody\" data-test=\"articleBody-2\" data-analytics=\"RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2\"><span class=\"HighlightShare-hidden\" style=\"top:0;left:0\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"InlineImage-imageEmbed\" id=\"ArticleBody-InlineImage-108277271\" data-test=\"InlineImage\">\n<div class=\"InlineImage-wrapper\">\n<div>\n<p>Xavier Lorenzo | Moment | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>As many Americans see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/06\/average-irs-tax-refund.html\">higher tax refunds<\/a> this season, some are facing payment delays amid the IRS push to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/04\/01\/the-us-government-is-phasing-out-paper-checks-what-that-means-for-you.html\">phase out paper checks<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>House Ways and Means Committee Democrats this week <a href=\"https:\/\/democrats-waysandmeans.house.gov\/media-center\/press-releases\/davis-sewell-press-trump-administration-explanation-after-more-830000\" target=\"_blank\">sent a letter<\/a> to Treasury Secretary and acting IRS Commissioner Scott Bessent, seeking answers about the more than 830,000 IRS notices sent to filers about refund delays for paper payment requests.  <\/p>\n<p>The letter references a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/individuals\/understanding-your-cp53e-notice\" target=\"_blank\">CP53E notice<\/a>, which the agency sends to request updated banking information for refund payments via direct deposit. Recipients have 30 days to provide these details via an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/01\/12\/irs-online-account.html\">IRS online account<\/a>, or the agency will issue a paper refund after six weeks.      \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHaving reviewed the IRS notice and called the IRS phone lines, we learned that there is no simple process for these taxpayers to request an immediate release of their refund by paper check without waiting at least 10 weeks,\u201d wrote Reps. Danny Davis, D-Ill., and Terri Sewell, D-Al., who each serve as ranking subcommittee members.<\/p>\n<p>The IRS did not immediately respond to CNBC\u2019s request for comment about the House Democrats\u2019 letter. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-relatedContent\" id=\"RegularArticle-RelatedContent-1\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-container\">\n<div class=\"RelatedContent-nonCollapsibleContent\">\n<h2 id=\"read-more-cnbc-personal-finance-coverage\" class=\"RelatedContent-header\">Read more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/13\/tax-refund-delays.html\">IRS paper check changes trigger tax refund delays for more than 830,000 filers<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/13\/tariff-dividend-checks-a-new-bill-could-create-a-tax-rebate-program.html\">Did tariff dividend checks just become more likely? Economists weigh in<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/13\/oil-prices-mortgage-rates.html\">\u2018High oil prices are not good for mortgage rates,\u2019 economist says. What to know<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/12\/iran-war-fed.html\">Iran war heightens affordability issues ahead of the Fed\u2019s March meeting<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/12\/spousal-ira-save-for-retirement.html\">Couples often miss this \u2018overlooked tax break\u2019 for retirement savers: CFP<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/12\/student-loan-oversight-trump-gao.html\">Trump administration has scaled back oversight of student loan servicers: GAO<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/11\/social-security-cola-oil-prices.html\">Social Security 2027 COLA forecast may rise with high oil prices<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/11\/personal-loan-credit-card-debt-consolidation.html\">You can\u2019t \u2018borrow your way out of debt,\u2019 expert says, but more people are trying<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/11\/cpi-inflation-february-2026-breakdown.html\">Here\u2019s the inflation breakdown for February 2026 \u2014 in one chart<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/10\/save-plan-for-student-loan-borrowers-is-over-federal-appeals-court-.html\">SAVE plan used by millions of student loan borrowers is over, court orders<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/10\/identity-theft-taxes.html\">Identity theft and your taxes: It\u2019s \u2018a terrible reverse lottery,\u2019 one victim says<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/10\/iran-war-spikes-oil-prices-consumers.html\">As Iran war disrupts oil prices, consumers could be \u2018hammered,\u2019 economist says<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/09\/million-dollar-earners-social-security-2026.html\">Million-dollar earners have already stopped paying into Social Security for 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/09\/k-shaped-economy-women.html\">Women and the K-shaped economy: Lower pay, affordability issues reduce spending<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/09\/401k-auto-portability-roth.html\">Small 401(k) accounts may follow workers to their next job \u2014 except Roth money<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/10\/01\/best-financial-advisors.html\">CNBC\u2019s Financial Advisor 100: Best financial advisors, top firms ranked<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>The CP53E notices stem from an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/04\/01\/the-us-government-is-phasing-out-paper-checks-what-that-means-for-you.html\">executive order<\/a> signed by President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> in March 2025, which mandated government agencies transition from paper to electronic payments.<\/p>\n<p>During the 2025 filing season, roughly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov\/news\/nta-blog\/as-the-irs-phases-out-paper-checks-vulnerable-taxpayers-must-not-be-left-behind\/2025\/10\/\" target=\"_blank\">94% of individual taxpayers<\/a> opted for refunds via direct deposit by providing banking details on their returns, according to the National Taxpayer Advocate. The remaining filers, about 10 million taxpayers, received refunds via paper check. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>\u201cMany of these taxpayers receive paper checks due to systemic, geographic or religious factors,\u201d national taxpayer advocate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/03\/19\/meet-erin-collins-national-taxpayer-advocate-for-the-irs.html\">Erin Collins<\/a> wrote in a blog post updated in late February.  <\/p>\n<p>This could include unbanked households, filers living abroad, those with religious constraints, victims of domestic abuse or individuals with disabilities, she wrote. <\/p>\n<p>The change also \u201cpunishes those who don\u2019t want to provide direct deposit information,\u201d said Josh Youngblood, owner of The Youngblood Group, a Dallas-based tax firm. He is also an enrolled agent, which is a tax license to practice before the IRS.<\/p>\n<p>While Youngblood always recommends his clients use direct deposit for refunds, he said some filers don\u2019t want to send those details to the IRS. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2 id=\"what-to-know-if-you-receive-a-cp53e-notice\" class=\"ArticleBody-subtitle\"><a id=\"headline0\"\/>What to know if you receive a CP53E notice<\/h2>\n<div class=\"group\">\n<p>If you\u2019re due a refund and don\u2019t provide direct deposit details with your return this season, you can expect a CP53E notice. <\/p>\n<p>Filers can\u2019t resolve the issue by calling the IRS. The only way to provide banking details is via an IRS online account, according to the agency. <\/p>\n<p>When clients receive the notice and want to update banking information, \u201cwe can\u2019t do it for them, even with the power of attorney,\u201d Youngblood said. <\/p>\n<p>Always double-check that information before updating your account because the IRS will send a paper check if the details are incorrect and the bank rejects the deposit. <\/p>\n<p>After updating your account, you should see refund details online within two to five days, according to the IRS. You can also use the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/refunds\" target=\"_blank\">Where\u2019s My Refund<\/a>\u00a0tool to check the status of your payment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ArticleBody-googlePreferredSourceContainer\" data-module=\"GooglePreferredSource\" data-id=\"RegularArticle-GooglePreferredSource-5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2026\/03\/13\/tax-refund-delays.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Xavier Lorenzo | Moment | Getty Images As many Americans see higher tax refunds this season, some are&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":42102,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-investing","cs-entry","cs-video-wrap"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42101\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/42102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}