Tax refund wrong? Why, what to do

May 11, 2011

Most folks get a refund from Uncle Sam each year. They either like the forced savings (despite the advice of tax and financial advisers) or the tax cash was a nice one-year surprise.

But occasionally, the check that shows up in your snail mail box or is directly deposited in your bank account is wrong.

When this happens, it tends to be less than you expected.

However, now and then, a refund amount is larger than what you figured on your 1040. That happened to me one year.

Regardless of whether your actual, final refund is too large or too small, the difference is a bit disconcerting.

Today's Weekly Tax Tip looks at the unexpected refund amount issue, examining why it usually happens (can you say offsets and/or filing mistakes?) and what you can do.

Tax tip schedule: Remember, a new tip will be posted in the upper right corner of the ol' blog's home page each Wednesday through the end of the year.

And if you missed the earlier weekly tips, be sure to check out the Weekly Tax Tip page.

Related posts:

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The More Tax Posts tab at the top of this page will take you to, well, more tax posts. You also can search below for a tax topic. 

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Tax Season 2026 Continues!

We made it. Tax Day 2025 is finally over. For most of us. When the filing season started on Jan. 26, millions who were expecting refunds filed immediately. Most of us got our returns to the Internal Revenue Service by April 15. But plenty of taxpayers also got extensions. They are looking at an Oct. 15 filing deadline.

Those procrastinating filers aren’t a problem. In fact, the IRS appreciates taxpayers who take time to fill out their 1040 forms correctly. It also is grateful that tax submissions are spread out a bit, especially now that the IRS is a leaner agency. Processing returns is easier when they arrive throughout the year instead of in massive bunches.

But enough about Uncle Sam’s tax collection issues. The focus now is on all y’all who filed for extensions, giving you another six months to complete your return. Since your new mid-October due date will be here before you know it, let’s get started now on meeting it.

The ol’ blog is here to help you finish up your extended Form 1040. You can start with January’s tax tips page, which has links to the rest of the year’s tips by-month collections. You also can peruse various tax categories for more tailored advice by clicking on the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of this (and every) page.

And to make sure you don’t miss your new filing deadline, the count-down clock below will let you know just how much time you to file by Oct. 15. At the latest.e. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

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