If you have filed your tax return for 2025 and are still waiting for the refund, you are in the same boat, and there is a good reason for that. The IRS came out and said that 2025 tax returns which claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) are yielding slower response times than has been the case prior.
These special credits meant to help poor working families can bring, actually, much more money in the form of additional refund money—up to several thousands of dollars. With the approaching April 15 deadline, a lot of people in the US are increasingly looking for answers to the question: “Where’s my refund?”
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Information about the reasons behind the delays and the possibility of future action is presented below.
Why EITC and ACTC Claims Take Longer
Based on the IRS updated file from March 2025, the average refund amount for this year was $3,271. While attaining the payment electronically is a method that has proved to be quick and efficient for many, those who have put in for EITC or ACTC refunds fall back as they must wait in the longer review lines.
This is not an unprecedented development. In essence, the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act of 2015—an Act that is a part of the federal tax law—forces the IRS, regardless of the month the return was submitted, to freeze all refunds which have either of the afore-mentioned credits up to the middle of February.
The belief is that the above condition will make it possible for the IRS to:
- Combine income data collected from W-2s and 1099s
- Spot any potential fraud or mistakes
- Verify whether the taxpayer is qualified for the credits
But this year, there are more factors which are responsible for the delays being extended in duration than ever before.
What’s Slowing Things Down in 2025?
- Higher Filing Volume Early in the Season The IRS saw a significant spike in early filings this year, especially from families who wanted their refunds to go up with inflation-adjusted credits. The system for processing, while well-optimized, still can’t cope with the amount of traffic.
- Increased Verification for Credits In order to guarantee that only eligible claims are getting refundable credits, the IRS is implementing more rigorous requirements for the verification of a recipient’s income, dependent’s eligibility, and against last-year filings check.
- Manual Review Backlog If something was flagged on the return—errors, mismatches, or incomplete fields—it is possible for the return to be manually reviewed. The completion of these returns will take a longer time, even if you e-file.
What to Expect
If you ended up claiming EITC or ACTC in your return:
- You would have gotten your money between 27th February and 15th March if the return has been compiled correctly.
- If the current date is April 1 or later and you’ve yet to have the money refunded, it might have been in manual processing so check that option first.
- You can use the IRS tool on its website, irs.gov/refunds to inquire about the status.
Ways to Prevent Delays in 2026
The IRS, to avoid the delays of the new tax season, proposes the following actions:
- Send Your Application and Electronically
- Double-Verify Your Eligibility
- Use the Right Paperwork and the Right Data
- Give Correct Information about Your Income and the Use of Your Tax Credit
- Find Your Record
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) are both very generous with some families being able to claim the maximum of $7,430 in total. This money is, however, not given without any restrictions, one, there are more checks imposed to ensure that it is not fraud and two, the eligibility of the claimant. The first thing about amending taxes is that you may not have submitted the documentation or information the previous time due to one reason or the other, though you can still go back and do the filing.
If the government has yet to issue your refund, rest assured that the situation is not that serious yet. Normally, the time that elapses could as well be part of the process; if not, just stay on the system and keep abreast of the situation until a phone call to the IRS is the only viable option after 21 days after filling out form.
This time of the next year, very early preparation is necessary for any one apart from it is very important to be first queued in and have all items correct if you want to escape from being delayed.
Please continue to rely on us for more tax season announcements.
