If you electronically file your tax return, you will receive an email within 48 hours. This email will tell you to sign into your account, to see if your return was accepted. If your return was not accepted, you can correct your return resubmit it to IRS at no charge.

When your return is accepted by the IRS, the time it takes to process the return and receive any refund owed can vary. If you e-file and request that your refund be direct deposited into your bank account, you may receive your tax refund in as little as 6-8 days. This does not mean that you will necessarily receive your refund that quickly, though. The IRS reports that it “issues more than 9 out of 10 refunds in less than 21 days.

If you file your return near the deadline, April 15^th in most cases, (October 15^th for those who filed an extension) there may be additional deadlines that you should be aware of. Taxpayers with an April 15^th deadline who have their return rejected by the IRS typically have until the 20^th of April to correct and resubmit the return. In most situations, if your original return was submitted before the deadline and is accepted by April 20^th, you can consider your return to be on time. Any returns e-filed or accepted after April 20^th are considered late.

Taxpayers who filed an extension get a deadline of October 15^th. Rejected returns with an extension are due back by the 20^th of October, and required to be accepted by the IRS by this date. Like standard filers, in most cases, if your return was originally filed before October 15^th and accepted by the 20^th, it is considered a timely return.

In situations where the IRS does not accept your return by the October 20^th deadline, your return is considered late. The IRS doesn’t accept any electronic returns after November 30^th, so at that point you’ll need to mail your return via snail mail.