If you find yourself  expecting a large refund, ask yourself, "Am I withholding too much on my W-4?"  Remember that a refund of taxes means you are getting back money that you could have used, or banked,  or put into your 401(k), during the entire tax year. It's poor money management if you consistently receive large refunds year after year. 

If your large refund is a result of overwitholding on your W-4,  visit Withholding to learn more about your W-4 allowance and how it affects your tax refund.

Gone are the days when taxpayers eagerly checked their mailboxes for their income tax refunds. Direct Deposit, first offered in 1987, made receiving a tax refund a fast and safe proposition. Direct deposit is still popular, with more than 59 million individuals choosing to have their tax refund deposited directly into their bank accounts.

Direct deposit of your federal income tax refund is available whether you file electronically or with paper forms.

You can use direct deposit to any United States financial institution, so long as you provide a valid routing number and account number. Some financial institutions do not allow joint refunds to be deposited into individual accounts. Check with your financial institution to ensure that your direct deposit will be accepted.

If you wish to direct deposit into only one account or financial institution, use the appropriate line on your Form 1040.

Beginning in January 2007,  the IRS began a split-refund program to allow taxpayers to select up to three different accounts or financial institutions to receive the direct deposit. Use Form 8888, Direct Deposit of Refund to More Than One Account, to divide your refund.

Please visit Frequently Asked Questions about Splitting 2006 Federal Income Tax Refunds on the IRS web site for further information about split refunds..

It is still possible to receive your income tax refund by paper check. It is the slowest way to receive your refund, and is less secure than direct deposit.

You can track the progress of your refund at Where's My Refund? or use IRS Publication 2043 – E-file Refund Cycle Chart to determine when you should receive your paper check.

The IRS provides several means to check on your refund:

• Use the IRS E-file Refund Cycle Chart to determine when direct deposit was sent or paper check was mailed.
• The IRS maintains a secure site, Where's My Refund?, for you to track the progress of your refund. You must know your SSN, Filing Status, and the exact amount of the refund in order to use this tool. 

For more information see IRS Publication 17 – Your Federal Income Tax.