ITR refund status: how to check it, what it means and how to fix a stuck refund

✓Checked against official sources · verified 30 October 2026

Before you check: three things that must be in place

• Your return must be e-verified. Refunds are processed only after verification. If you do not e-verify, send the signed ITR-V within 30 days of filing.
• Your PAN must be linked with Aadhaar. If it is not, your PAN becomes inoperative and a refund will not be issued.
• Your bank account must be pre-validated on the e-filing portal, in your own name (matching PAN), with the correct IFSC, and still open.

Method 1: e-filing portal (all recent refunds)

1. Log in at incometax.gov.in with your PAN or Aadhaar and password. If a pop-up says your PAN is not linked to Aadhaar, link it first.
2. Go to e-File > Income Tax Returns > View Filed Returns.
3. Find the assessment year and click View Details. You will see the full history of the return — filed, verified, processed — and the refund status.

The Income Tax Department says refunds determined after 31 March 2023 show up here.

Method 2: Protean (formerly NSDL) refund status page

For refunds determined on or before 31 March 2023, the department points taxpayers to the refund-status page run by Protean (formerly NSDL). Enter your PAN and the assessment year, then click Proceed. For anything recent, use the e-filing portal instead.

What the refund status means

Why refunds get delayed

• Return not e-verified, or ITR-V not received in time
• Bank account not pre-validated, closed, or the name does not match your PAN
• PAN inoperative because it is not linked with Aadhaar
• Mismatch with AIS or Form 26AS. TDS you claimed does not appear against your PAN (for example, the deductor filed a wrong PAN or did not file the TDS return), or income in AIS is missing from your return
• Outstanding demand from an earlier year that the department proposes to adjust
• Defective return or a pending notice that you need to respond to

According to the portal, a refund usually arrives within 4 to 5 weeks of e-verification. If it has not, check your email and the portal for any communication about discrepancies.

How to raise a refund reissue request

You can raise this request only when a refund has been issued and has failed.

1. First fix the cause. Usually this means adding and pre-validating a bank account that is open, in your name, with the correct IFSC.
2. Log in and go to Services > Refund Reissue.
3. Click Create Refund Reissue Request, select the record and click Continue.
4. Select the validated bank account and click Proceed to Verification.
5. e-Verify with Aadhaar OTP, a registered DSC, or an EVC through your bank or demat account.
6. Note the Transaction ID. You can track the request under View Refund Reissue Request.

Interest on refund

For returns under the Income-tax Act, 1961 (up to AY 2026-27), interest on a refund is paid under section 244A at 0.5% for every month or part of a month:

• For a refund of TDS, TCS or advance tax, interest runs from 1 April of the assessment year if the return was filed by the due date. If the return was filed late, it runs from the date of filing.
• For a refund of self-assessment tax, interest runs from the date of filing or the date of payment, whichever is later.
• No interest is paid if the refund is less than 10% of the tax determined.
• Any delay that is due to you (for example, late replies to notices) is left out of the interest period.

Refund interest is taxable as income from other sources in the year you receive it. For returns of tax year 2026-27 onwards, refunds and refund interest come under the corresponding provisions of the Income-tax Act, 2025.

Frequently asked questions

How TaxEase can help

If your refund is stuck, we compare your return with your AIS and Form 26AS, follow up with the deductor where TDS is missing, and file the rectification or reissue request for you. See our AIS/26AS reconciliation guide and the TDS return checker, file correctly the first time through our ITR filing service, or send us your query.