Every year, more than 165 million Americans file their taxes with the IRS; with around two in three receiving refunds, tax season is one of the largest annual payments events in the US. 

The vast majority of these payments are delivered electronically, with 93% issued via direct deposit and the remainder sent by paper check. The figures reflect a broader push by the U.S. government to reduce reliance on checks, which are more than 16 times as likely to be lost, stolen, altered, or delayed, and can take six weeks or longer to arrive. By contrast, electronic refunds provide faster and more reliable access to funds, typically within 21 days for those who file electronically.

However, some financial institutions and tax-preparing companies are moving to make the tax refund process match the expectations of today’s economy: seamless and instant. As a result, tax refunds are emerging as a compelling use case for real-time delivery via the RTP® network, the real-time payments infrastructure operated by The Clearing House.

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