ITR Refund Status: How much time does it take to get credited, and what's the reason for the delay?

Many taxpayers are still waiting for their AY 2025–26 income tax refunds, even as others have already received theirs after filing and verifying their returns. If your refund hasn’t been credited yet, you’re not alone—delays are common, and most people don’t realise the specific issues that can hold up their refund.

CBDT Chairman Ravi Agrawal clarified that refund delays occur because the Income Tax Department is examining cases where questionable deduction claims may have been made. He also explained that taxpayers have been asked to submit revised returns if they missed providing the required information.

Agrawal said smaller refunds are already being issued. After reviewing the data, the department found several instances of incorrect refund or deduction claims. He noted that processing is continuous and efforts are underway to clear pending refunds. PTI quoted Agarwal as saying that the remaining refunds are likely to be released by December.

To track your refund status, go to the Income Tax e-Filing portal and log in with your user ID and password. Navigate to the e-File section, choose Income Tax Returns, and select View Filed Returns. From there, you can check the refund status for the relevant assessment year. By clicking on View Details, taxpayers can monitor the processing timeline and life cycle of their filed income tax return.

The portal may display several possible refund statuses.
Status 1: When refund is issued
Status 2: When refund is partially adjusted
Status 3: When full refund adjusted
Status 4: When refund is failed

Refunds often get delayed if errors are found in the tax return, including incorrect calculations or missing information. When such discrepancies are detected, the ITR is flagged for review, slowing the process. Refunds may also be held back if the taxpayer’s bank account is not pre-validated, if the account name does not match the PAN, if an invalid IFSC code is used, or if the mentioned bank account is inactive or closed.