Code 846 on your IRS transcript means your refund has been approved and scheduled to be sent. The date printed next to it is when the IRS released the payment, and the dollar figure is the amount they authorized. If you searched for “846L,” that’s the same code: the “L” refers to the “literal,” which is the IRS’s word for the plain-English label (“Refund Issued”) that appears alongside every transaction code on a transcript.1Taxpayer Advocate Service. Decoding IRS Transcripts and the New Transcript Format: Part II There is no separate “846L” variant.
Once 846 posts with a date and amount, the IRS treats your refund as processed on their end. According to the Taxpayer Advocate Service, TC 846 “represents the issuance of a taxpayer’s refund if the credits and withholding exceed the amount of tax due, and there are no issues with the return.”1Taxpayer Advocate Service. Decoding IRS Transcripts and the New Transcript Format: Part II What happens next depends mostly on how you asked to be paid.
When the Money Actually Arrives
The 846 date is when the IRS releases the payment, not necessarily when it lands.
Direct Deposit
Most direct deposits post on or very close to the 846 date. The IRS sends the payment electronically through the Federal Reserve, and federal banking rules require your bank to make electronic deposits available by the next business day.2Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Long Can a Bank or Credit Union Hold Funds I Deposited? Some banks post the funds as soon as the incoming transfer notification arrives, so you may see the deposit a day early. If the 846 date falls on a weekend or holiday, expect the deposit on the next business day.
Paper Checks
Paper checks take much longer. The IRS has said nonelectronic refund payments may take six weeks or more from the mailing date.3Internal Revenue Service. IRS to Phase Out Paper Tax Refund Checks Starting With Individual Taxpayers The 846 date shows when the payment was authorized, but the check still has to be printed and mailed to the address on your return. The IRS is phasing out paper refund checks for individual taxpayers, so setting up direct deposit is worth doing if you haven’t already.
If You Claimed EITC or ACTC
If you claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit, federal law requires the IRS to hold your entire refund until mid-February, even when nothing else is wrong with your return. For the 2026 filing season, the IRS projected that most EITC and ACTC refunds would be available by March 2, 2026, for taxpayers who filed electronically and chose direct deposit.4Internal Revenue Service. IRS Opens 2026 Filing Season Code 846 won’t appear on your transcript until after that hold lifts, so a blank refund line in late January or early February isn’t a problem.
Why the Amount Next to 846 May Not Match What You Expected
The number posted with code 846 sometimes differs from the refund you calculated. A few things can change it.
Treasury Offset Program
The most common reason is the Treasury Offset Program. The Bureau of the Fiscal Service, not the IRS, can reduce your refund to cover certain debts you owe to federal or state agencies. These include past-due child support, federal agency debts, state income tax obligations, and certain unemployment compensation overpayments.5Internal Revenue Service. Reduced Refund
When an offset happens, the Bureau of the Fiscal Service mails a separate notice showing the original refund, how much was taken, and which agency received the money.5Internal Revenue Service. Reduced Refund The 846 amount on your transcript may still reflect the full refund, while the deposit that reaches your bank is smaller. That mismatch surprises a lot of people.
Injured Spouse Situations
If you filed jointly and the offset was taken for your spouse’s debt, Form 8379 (Injured Spouse Allocation) lets you claim back your share. You can file it with your original return by writing “Injured Spouse” in the upper left corner of page one, or submit it after the offset. Attach copies of W-2s and any 1099s showing federal withholding. You have three years from the original return’s due date or two years from the date the tax was paid, whichever is later, to file.6Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 8379 Injured Spouse Allocation Injured spouse relief is different from innocent spouse relief (Form 8857), which applies when a spouse understated tax on a joint return.
Math Error Corrections
The IRS also corrects arithmetic mistakes, misapplied credits, and incorrect deductions during processing. When a correction changes your refund, the IRS sends a CP12 notice with a section labeled “What we changed on your return” that breaks down the adjustment.7Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP12 Notice If you disagree, you have to contact the IRS by the date on the notice; missing it costs you the formal right to challenge the change and to appeal to the U.S. Tax Court. The corrected number is what shows up next to code 846.
What to Do If the 846 Date Passes and Nothing Arrives
Sometimes 846 posts, the date comes and goes, and no money lands. First, check Where’s My Refund at irs.gov to confirm the refund was actually sent. If it was, you have to wait a set amount of time before the IRS will trace it:
- Direct deposit: at least five days from the date the refund was issued.
- Paper check mailed within your state: at least four weeks from the mailing date.
- Paper check mailed to a different state: at least six weeks.
- Paper check to a forwarded address or overseas: at least nine weeks.
After the waiting period, you can start a trace through Where’s My Refund, by calling 800-829-1954, or by filing Form 3911 (Taxpayer Statement Regarding Refund). If a direct deposit went to the wrong account, or a paper check was never cashed, the IRS can cancel the payment and reissue it. If a paper check was cashed by someone else, the Bureau of the Fiscal Service sends you a claim package with a copy of the cashed check so you can confirm whether the signature is yours.8Internal Revenue Service. Refunds
If 846 Hasn’t Posted Yet
When you pull your transcript and 846 isn’t there, other codes usually explain the delay.
Code 570: Additional Account Action Pending
Code 570 is a temporary hold while the IRS verifies something on your return. It isn’t an audit. Common triggers are mismatches between the income you reported and what employers or banks reported to the IRS, or reviews of credits like the EITC or Child Tax Credit. Most 570 holds clear within a few weeks with no action from you. A future date next to the code is the earliest the IRS expects to resolve it, not a guaranteed refund date.
Code 810: Refund Freeze
Code 810 is more serious. It signals a freeze, often tied to suspected identity theft, large discrepancies with third-party documents like W-2s, or questions about claimed credits. The freeze stays until the IRS finishes its review or you send in what they ask for.
Code 971: Notice Issued
Code 971 logs that the IRS generated a letter about your account. When it follows a 570 or 810, it usually means the IRS sent an explanation of the hold or a request for documents. The letter carries a CP or LTR number in the corner that tells you exactly what they want. You can also find pending notices in the “Notices and Letters” section of your IRS online account. Responding quickly is the fastest path back to a posted 846.
A Note on Refund Interest
If the IRS takes longer than 45 days after your filing deadline to issue a refund, they owe you interest, and that interest is taxable. When the interest paid during the calendar year reaches $10 or more, the IRS sends a Form 1099-INT, and you report it on your next return. The interest sometimes arrives as a separate deposit weeks after your refund posted, which throws people who see an unexpected small payment from the IRS. Interest payments get their own transaction code entry on your transcript, separate from the 846 line.