Will I get my tax refund if the government shuts down?

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Congress has until March 1 to avert a partial government shutdown and until March 8 to avoid a full government shutdown. If lawmakers fail to meet these two deadlines, parts of the government would be required by law to temporarily shut down operations.

The March 1 deadline would impact the departments of Veteran Affairs, Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation and Energy.

The second deadline, on Friday, March 8, would impact all other agencies including the Internal Revenue Service. Every department and agency has a set of procedures in case of a shutdown that includes which employees are considered essential, how many would get furloughed and who would work without pay.

According to the contingency plan released by the Department of Treasury for the fiscal year 2024, essential functions of the IRS would continue. It’s not clear exactly how filing season and refunds would be impacted since there has never been a shutdown during tax season.

However, experts agree that electronic tax refunds would most likely be processed as normal, if as long as there are no errors on the return. If there are issues with a return, it could take longer to process since IRS employees considered non-essential would be furloughed.

Taxpayers filing a hard copy might not be as lucky, and could experience delays in receiving their refund.

The IRS recommends filing electronically and setting up direct deposit to get a refund within 21 days.

The last time the government faced a looming shutdown was in January. At the time, IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said the agency would do everything in its power to minimize disruptions.

“We have not experienced a shutdown in the middle of filing season, so there is some uncertainty there,” Werfel said in January.

The filing deadline of April 15 will stay in place even if there is a government shutdown. Taxpayers can avoid possible delays by filing as soon as possible.

Nexstar reached out to the IRS, but a spokesperson for the department declined to comment on a hypothetical shutdown. The IRS is expected to release additional information in the event the government does shut down on March 8.