Under the PATH Act, the payment of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) refunds will be delayed until the hold is released on February 17, 2025. The United States IRS is required to follow this procedure to prevent tax fraud, but it’s only for a few weeks. If you filed your return early and claimed either of these credits, you can find the information about when to expect the payments below.
What impact does the PATH Act have on your tax credit refunds?
The PATH (Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes) Act requires that the Internal Revenue Service puts a hold on all EITC or ACTC refunds for a special review until February 17. The aim is to prevent fraud and ensure that claims are reported and filed correctly, but luckily, early filers won’t have to wait too long for their credit refunds.
The IRS website and app will be updated on February 17 to indicate the refund dates for early filers. The PATH funding will be processed in two batches, and based on historical precedent, these will take place on February 19 and 20.
The Internal Revenue Service has made up to $7,830 available under the EITC.
You can check your refund status by using Where’s My Refund? facility on the IRS’s official website.
The EITC and ACTC refund payment schedule
The PATH Act holding requirement will be lifted on February 17. It’s expected that the IRS will have sent out refund payments within 21 days of releasing the funds, although it doesn’t guarantee a time frame. Most EITC or ACTC claimants will have received their payments by February 28.
Here are the expected dates for the PATH Act funding:
- Monday, February 2: This is the President’s Day federal holiday, so no refunds will be processed on this day.
- Tuesday, February 18: The IRS will start processing returns but not funding refunds yet. It’s not likely that the US Treasury will release funds on the first possible day.
- Wednesday, February 19 to Friday, February 21: The IRS will start funding from today.
- Saturday, February 22 to Sunday, February 23: No refunds will be processed on weekends.
- Friday, February 28: The majority of refunds are expected to have been processed and paid into bank accounts by this date. Some banks process payments faster than others. However, those claimants who choose to receive Republic Bank paper checks delivered to the address listed on their latest tax return can expect to wait longer based on the mail system. They should have arrived within five to seven business days.
What else do you need to know about tax season 2025?
The United States Internal Revenue Service opened the 2025 tax filing season on Monday, January 27. The closing date is April 15, and it’s expected that 140 million tax returns will be submitted for the 2024 fiscal year.
There are two changes that you should be aware of in 2025. These are explained below:
Standard deduction increases
The standard deduction amounts for 2025 have gone up:
- Individual filers: $15,000 (an increase of $400 from 2024)
- Couples who file jointly: $30,000 (an increase of $800 from 2024)
- Heads of household: $22,500 (an increase of $600 from 2024)
Direct File is now available in 25 states
The IRS has made the Direct File system a permanent free option for federal tax returns for taxpayers in participating states who file relatively simple tax returns. Last year, Direct File was available in 12 states. This year, it’s 25:
- Alaska
- Arizona
- California
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Kansas
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Washington State
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
In more valuable tax news, there are good reasons reasons why submitting your tax return as soon as you can will benefit you in the long run and ensure you get the most out of the process with the least amount of stress, and you can find these tips here.