How to Change Your Bank Account for a Tax Refund

Once the IRS accepts your return, there is no form or phone call that lets you swap in a new routing and account number. So the practical answer to how to change the bank account for a tax refund depends on where you are in the process: before you file, fix it on the return; after you file but before the IRS processes it, call to stop the deposit; after processing, you are waiting to see whether the bank accepts or rejects the transfer, and if it rejects, the 2026 CP53E notice is what lets you provide new details.

Enter the Correct Account on Your Return

The reliable way to control where your refund lands is to put the right information on the return before you submit it. If you changed banks since last year, last year’s numbers will bounce the deposit.

Lines 35b through 35d on Form 1040 or 1040-SR ask for three things: your bank’s nine-digit routing number, your account number, and whether the account is checking or savings. Pull the routing number from the bottom left of a personal check or from your bank’s online portal. Skip the deposit slip, which sometimes shows an internal routing number that differs from the one used for electronic transfers.¹ The account number sits next to the routing number on a check, or in your bank app under account details.

Choosing the wrong account type can trigger a rejection even when both numbers are correct. If you’re not sure, ask your bank rather than guessing. Prepaid debit cards can also accept direct deposit, but the routing and account numbers assigned to the card usually differ from the number printed on its face, so confirm with the card provider before entering anything.²

Two ownership rules matter. First, the account has to be in your name, your spouse’s name, or a joint account with both names. The IRS will not deposit into a third party’s account, and banks may reject a transfer when the name on the return does not match the account holder.² Second, the IRS allows no more than three electronic refunds into the same account or prepaid card in a year. Go over that and the IRS sends a notice and issues a paper check instead.

Stopping a Deposit After You’ve Filed

There is one narrow window to intervene after you hit submit. If your return has not yet posted to the IRS system, you can call 800-829-1040 (Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time) and ask them to stop the direct deposit.² That is the only scenario where a phone call can head off a deposit going somewhere you don’t want it.

Once the return has been accepted and processing has begun, you cannot call the IRS and substitute new bank details. The system does not offer that option. From that point on, you are waiting to see whether the receiving bank accepts or rejects the transfer.

When the Bank Rejects the Deposit: The 2026 CP53E Process

The 2026 filing season changed how the IRS handles bounced direct deposits. In prior years, a rejected deposit was typically reissued as a paper check automatically. That is no longer the default. The IRS now freezes most rejected refund deposits and waits for you to act.³

When your bank rejects the deposit, the IRS mails a CP53E notice explaining the situation. Through your IRS Online Account you then have two paths:

Enter new bank information. Provide corrected routing and account numbers, and if the IRS verifies them, the refund is reissued electronically.
Request a paper check waiver through your online account if you don’t have a bank account or prefer a check.

Without an IRS Online Account or a bank account, call 800-829-1040 and ask a representative to switch your refund to a paper check.³ If you take no action after the CP53E arrives, the IRS issues a paper check after six weeks.

The CP53E is only issued once. If a second direct deposit attempt is also rejected, you will not get another chance to update your details through the same process. Verify any new routing and account number carefully before submitting them.

If Your Refund Went to the Wrong Account

The harder scenario is entering an incorrect routing or account number that happens to match someone else’s real account, with the bank accepting the deposit. The IRS position is direct: it assumes no responsibility for taxpayer or preparer errors in entering account information.⁴

Start with the bank that received the deposit and ask them to recover the funds. If two weeks pass without results, file Form 3911, Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund, to open a refund trace. The trace authorizes the IRS to contact the bank on your behalf.⁴ You can also start a trace by calling 800-829-1954 or 800-829-1040, though joint filers must use a representative or the form rather than the automated line.⁵

Banks have up to 90 days from the trace date to respond, and full resolution can run up to 120 days.⁴ If the bank recovers the money, the IRS sends the refund to your address on file by other means. If the funds have been spent or the bank refuses to return them, the IRS cannot force the issue, and the matter becomes a civil one between you, the bank, and the account holder. That is where taxpayers lose money permanently, which is the strongest reason to check every digit before filing.

If a Paper Check Is Coming, Update Your Address

A paper check goes to the address the IRS has on file. USPS mail forwarding is not a safe substitute: first-class mail is supposed to forward for up to a year, but not every post office forwards government checks consistently, and unforwarded checks come back to the IRS as undeliverable.⁶

Tell the IRS directly using one of these methods:

Mail Form 8822, Change of Address.
Send a signed written statement with your full name, Social Security number, and both your old and new addresses to the IRS office where you filed your last return.
Call 800-829-1040 and update your address with a representative after verifying your identity.

Address changes typically take four to six weeks to process, so update early rather than waiting for a check to bounce back.⁶

1
Internal Revenue Service. Electronic Funds Withdrawal Payment Record Instructions
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Internal Revenue Service. Get Your Refund Faster: Tell IRS to Direct Deposit Your Refund to One, Two, or Three Accounts
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Taxpayer Advocate Service. Direct Deposit Changes for 2026 Could Affect How and When You Get Your Refund
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Internal Revenue Service. Refund Inquiries 18
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Internal Revenue Service. Refund Inquiries
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Internal Revenue Service. Address Changes