Where’s my Ohio refund? How to track it.

Written by: Lindsay VanSomeren
• •4 min read
Man sitting in a homemade tent with his young daughter, reading on his phoneImage: Man sitting in a homemade tent with his young daughter, reading on his phone

In a Nutshell

If you’re wondering where your Ohio tax refund is, you can track its status online with a few clicks of a mouse, by phone or by using the state Department of Taxation’s mobile app.
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This article was fact-checked by our editors and Jennifer Samuel, senior product specialist for Credit Karma.

Filing your state return and discovering you’re due a refund can feel like a welcome reward for completing the chore of filing. But once you’ve filed your return and you believe a refund is on the way, how do you track it?

If you’re wondering “Where’s my Ohio refund,” you can answer the question through the state Department of Taxation’s website or mobile app. Let’s take a look at how to track the status of your Ohio tax refund.

Where’s my Ohio refund?

You have three options for checking your Ohio tax refund status 24/7.

To check the status of your refund, you’ll need to provide personal information, including your Social Security number and birthdate. Note that you’ll only be able to check the status of the current tax year’s refund.

Can I check the status of my federal tax refund?

You can get the status of your federal tax refund using the IRS “Where’s My Refund?” tool. It’s available online or through the IRS2Go.app. You’ll need your Social Security number or ITIN, filing status and exact refund amount.

How long will it take to get my refund?

Both how you file your tax return and how you opt to be paid will affect how long it takes for you to get your tax refund. In general, here’s when you can expect to get your Ohio income tax refund.

  • 15 business days if you e-filed and asked for the refund to be directly deposited into your bank account
  • 22 business days if you e-filed and requested a paper check
  • Eight to 10 weeks if you filed a paper return

What’s the fastest way to get my refund?

Those who filed their Ohio state tax return electronically and requested direct deposit will get their refunds the fastest, according to the Ohio Department of Taxation. And it can take a whopping eight to 10 weeks to get a check in the mail for those who filed a paper return.

Filing electronically and requesting to receive your refund by direct deposit should take a mere 15 business days — and if you filed early on in the tax season, you may get your refund even sooner.

It’s also important to file an accurate return and make sure you provide any information the state will need to substantiate what you’ve reported on your return. For example, if you’re claiming a tax credit that requires documentation, your state tax refund could be held up if you didn’t include these extra bits of info. Mistakes could delay processing of your tax return, which could delay your refund.

What if my refund is less than I expected?

There could be several reasons why your tax refund is less than you expected. For example, if you made an error when completing the return that affects the amount of tax you think you owe, the taxing authority may adjust your refund accordingly.
On its website, the Ohio Department of Taxation specifically addresses one possible reason for a refund adjustment — a refund offset. The department has the authority to take some or all of your income tax refund if you owe certain types of debts. Here are some examples of debt that might trigger a refund offset.

  • Back child support
  • Public assistance repayment
  • Debt related to Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation premiums
  • Federal income tax debt
  • Certain debts collected by the state’s attorney general

If you filed jointly and your spouse has this type of debt, your refund could be at risk. You’ll typically receive an Ohio Income Tax Refund Offset letter, which includes the Ohio Non-Liable Spouse worksheet. If you’re not liable for the debt, you’ll need to complete the worksheet and mail or fax it to the Department of Taxation with any documents that support your claim by the date listed on the offset notice.

What should I do if I didn’t get my refund?

If you should have received your refund by now but you haven’t, first check the Department of Taxation’s website or mobile app, or give them a call, to see if the refund has actually been issued.

You should also check with your bank to see if it can verify whether the refund has been deposited into your account. Double check your mailbox as well, if you opted to receive your refund as a paper check.

If you still don’t see your tax refund, it’s time to alert someone, because your refund may have been lost or stolen. You can contact the Ohio Department of Taxation to report any problems at 1-800-282-1780.

Bottom line

It’s easy to track your Ohio tax refund, and the IRS makes it equally easy to track your federal refund, too. Keeping an eye on the status of your tax refunds is about more than just being impatient. It’s good to know when to expect them — and when to raise a red flag if your refund is overdue.

Jennifer Samuel, senior tax product specialist for Credit Karma, has more than a decade of experience in the tax preparation industry, including work as a tax analyst and tax preparation professional. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Saint Leo University. You can find her on LinkedIn.

About the author: Lindsay VanSomeren is a freelance writer living in Kirkland, Washington. She has been a professional dogsled racer, a wildlife researcher, and a participant in the National Spelling Bee. She writes for websites such a… Read more.