Thousands In Your State May Be Due Part of A Billion Dollar Income Tax Refund

In a news release published on July 1, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service indicated nearly 1.5 million individual taxpayers are owed approximately $1.5 billion in tax refunds. Thousands of people in each state or district across the United States neglected to file 2016 taxes and now the IRS is sitting on billions of dollars in unclaimed income tax returns.

Normally, by now, that unclaimed money would have become the property of the U.S. Treasury. The IRS allows taxpayers a 3-year window of opportunity to file past due tax returns and claim any compensation that might be due. This year, 2020, is the 3-year deadline to file 2016 federal income tax returns. This deadline would usually hit on April 15th, or the April tax deadline for a given year. For 2020, the Internal Revenue Service extended the standard April tax filing deadline to July 15th due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In doing so, the agency also postponed the cutoff date for filing tax year 2016 returns and claiming refunds for that year to July 15th, 2020.

Now, if you are a taxpayer who still has not filed your 2016 return, you still have the opportunity to file. The IRS created the chart below which reveals the estimated number of people in each state across the nation who may have an income tax refund for 2016. Check the chart below to see the number of people in your state or district and the possible dollar amount of unclaimed returns.

State or District	Estimated Number of Individuals	Median Potential Refund	Total Potential Refunds*
Alabama	23,300	$859	$24,614,400
Alaska	5,500	$979	$6,754,900
Arizona	32,400	$762	$32,281,600
Arkansas	13,400	$822	$13,798,800
California	130,600	$816	$135,981,300
Colorado	27,500	$809	$28,276,500
Connecticut	14,300	$930	$16,213,300
Delaware	5,600	$878	$6,114,500
District of Columbia	3,700	$904	$4,224,600
Florida	99,000	$874	$105,706,400
Georgia	48,600	$792	$49,682,700
Hawaii	7,700	$932	$8,785,600
Idaho	6,200	$727	$5,876,000
Illinois	51,700	$909	$57,312,200
Indiana	32,700	$887	$35,129,700
Iowa	14,700	$908	$15,735,600
Kansas	14,600	$877	$15,706,800
Kentucky	18,700	$869	$19,517,100
Louisiana	24,400	$849	$26,410,100
Maine	5,600	$802	$5,482,200
Maryland	28,200	$873	$31,619,700
Massachusetts	29,900	$956	$34,261,900
Michigan	46,600	$853	$49,591,400
Minnesota	21,000	$803	$21,155,300
Mississippi	12,900	$777	$12,931,600
Missouri	32,400	$828	$33,522,400
Montana	4,600	$781	$4,582,000
Nebraska	7,800	$845	$8,081,700
Nevada	15,900	$859	$16,922,300
New Hampshire	6,500	$965	$7,474,300
New Jersey	36,200	$936	$41,268,900
New Mexico	9,600	$833	$10,219,600
New York	70,300	$958	$80,830,100
North Carolina	44,900	$833	$46,044,500
North Dakota	4,000	$949	$4,539,800
Ohio	52,900	$841	$54,542,900
Oklahoma	21,000	$866	$22,600,000
Oregon	21,400	$762	$21,237,200
Pennsylvania	55,200	$919	$60,505,200
Rhode Island	3,900	$926	$4,410,100
South Carolina	17,200	$769	$17,323,700
South Dakota	3,800	$899	$3,976,100
Tennessee	29,000	$840	$29,834,800
Texas	143,400	$898	$159,809,900
Utah	11,100	$766	$11,037,700
Vermont	2,800	$892	$2,897,400
Virginia	37,900	$827	$39,977,600
Washington	37,200	$918	$42,273,300
West Virginia	7,200	$921	$7,830,000
Wisconsin	19,900	$781	$19,483,100
Wyoming	3,400	$920	$3,766,100
Totals	1,418,300	$861	$1,518,154,900
*Excluding credits.	Table 1 – IRS Table State-by-state estimates of individuals who may be due 2016 income tax refunds

Notice the column titled, “Total Potential Refunds”. It is stated as “potential” because there is the chance that some individuals might qualify for Earned Income Tax Credit, which could potentially increase the total unclaimed value. On the flip side of this, there is also the potential that a refund can be withheld if 2017 and/or 2018 returns have not been filed. Another reason that your refund can possibly be held back if you file is that you owe the IRS or a state tax agency, you have unpaid child support or you are past due on any federal debts (like student loans for example).

Find more information and details about the $1.5 billion in unclaimed refunds and how to file current and prior year tax forms on the IRS website at irs.gov.

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Jul, 2020