Tax Day is still two months away, but if you’ve filed your tax return, you might already be wondering: Where is my refund?
For electronic filers, refunds should hit your bank account relatively soon after filing – often within a few weeks. However, anyone who filed paper returns may have to wait longer for their federal and state refunds.
Meanwhile, though President Donald Trump has repeatedly promised dividend checks to Americans from the profits of his global import tariffs, there has been little movement on the initiative.
Here’s what to know about the status of tax refunds and the latest on a potential tariff dividend check:
Where is my state refund? Here’s how to check your refund status
If you filed state taxes electronically in Wisconsin, you should receive your refund within three weeks in most cases, according to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.
Paper tax returns, though, can take longer to process. The department says its safeguards against fraud and errors could delay paper refunds for up to 12 weeks.
You can check the status of your refund online on Wisconsin’s tax refund portal.
Where is my federal refund? How to check the status
Like state refunds, most federal tax refunds are issued within three weeks of electronic filing, according to the IRS. Refunds for paper returns can take several more weeks.
You can check the status of your federal tax refund online using the IRS “Where’s My Refund?” tool.
As of September 2025, the IRS no longer issues paper checks, meaning most refunds will be issued by direct deposit or other electronic methods this tax season. You can find information on how to open up a free or low-cost bank account at fdic.gov/getbanked or mycreditunion.gov.
Are tariff refund checks on the way for Wisconsin residents in 2026?
There are no solid plans to send out $2,000 tariff dividend payments as of January 2026, USA TODAY reported.
However, Trump provided a new timeline for potential checks during an interview last month with The New York Times after seemingly forgetting about his promise regarding the payments earlier in the same interview, according to a transcript published Jan. 11.
“The tariff money is so substantial,” he said. “That’s coming in, that I’ll be able to do $2,000 sometime. I would say toward the end of the year.”
It’s worth noting such checks would likely require approval from Congress, similar to the payments sent to Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Supreme Court is also expected to rule in the coming weeks about the legality of the president using emergency powers to impose sweeping global tariffs.
When is the deadline to file 2026 taxes?
Federal and Wisconsin state taxes are both due on Wednesday, April 15.
Any taxpayer can request an extension for filing their tax returns as long as they do so before the April 15 deadline. You can request an extension until Oct. 15 by mail or through the IRS website: www.irs.gov/filing/get-an-extension-to-file-your-tax-return.
What happens if you miss the tax deadline?
If you miss the federal tax deadline, the standard penalty is 5% of any tax due for each month the return is late, with a maximum penalty of up to 25% of the unpaid balance.
If you miss the Wisconsin tax deadline, the standard penalty is a late-filing fee of $50, delinquent interest of 1.5% per month and a penalty of 5% per month of the tax required to be shown on the return, up to a maximum of 25%.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: How long will it take to get my tax refund? See where to check your federal and state refund status
Reporting by Maia Pandey and Cailey Gleeson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
