How to Check Your Vermont Tax Refund Status Online

You can check your Vermont tax refund status at myVTax.vermont.gov by selecting “Check the Status of Your Return” and entering your Social Security Number or ITIN, last name, ZIP code, and the exact refund amount from your Form IN-111. The portal updates every weekday between 4:30 and 5:00 p.m. EST.¹ E-filed returns generally process in six to eight weeks; paper returns take eight to twelve.

How to Check Online

The lookup takes about a minute if you have your return in front of you.¹

Go to myVTax.vermont.gov and click “Check the Status of Your Return” in the Returns panel.
Choose Personal Income Tax Return Status.
Enter your SSN or ITIN, last name, ZIP code, and the refund amount shown on Form IN-111 (Line 27 or Line 29).
Click Search. Your current status appears immediately.

Prefer the phone? Call the Department of Taxes at 802-828-2865.¹

What You Need Before You Start

The portal matches your entries against the Department’s records exactly, so a small discrepancy will block the lookup. Use the whole-dollar refund amount from your IN-111, not a rounded estimate and not the figure from your federal return.¹ For joint filers, enter the SSN or ITIN of the primary filer listed on the return. Checking more than one tax year? Run a separate search for each, using the correct IN-111 for that period.

How Long Vermont Refunds Take

E-filed returns are the fastest, processing in roughly six to eight weeks. Paper returns take eight to twelve, since they have to be received, scanned, and manually entered before they appear in the system.¹ Both windows tend to stretch during the February-through-April peak.

myVTax updates once each weekday afternoon, so refreshing throughout the day won’t reveal anything new.¹ If the portal can’t find your return at all, it likely hasn’t been entered yet. Wait a few business days after e-filing before trying again; paper filers may need to wait several weeks.

What the Status Messages Mean

Return Received. Your submission is in the queue but review hasn’t started.
In Process. Staff are reviewing the return, verifying reported income against employer records, and checking the math. This is the normal stage and doesn’t mean anything is wrong.
Refund Issued. The refund has been sent by direct deposit or mailed as a check. Delivery timing from here depends on your bank or the postal service.

Why a Refund Might Be Delayed

The Department has acknowledged that fraud prevention screening alone can push processing past ten weeks in some cases.¹ Most other delays fall into three groups.

Math Errors or a Missing Schedule

If the numbers on your IN-111 don’t add up, or a required schedule is missing, the return gets pulled for manual review. Fixable, but slow.

Identity Verification

When a return trips the Department’s fraud filters, it’s held until you confirm your identity. If the Department or the IRS finds that someone has already filed under your name, you’ll receive a letter; the Department asks that you respond immediately and follow the instructions it contains.² Once a fraudulent refund has already gone out in your name, the Department will work with you to release your legitimate refund, though extra steps add time.

Refund Offsets for Debts You Owe

Vermont law lets state agencies intercept your refund to cover debts. Any state government unit, including agencies, departments, boards, commissions, and public corporations such as the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation, can submit debts of $45 or more for setoff. Collection agencies under contract with the Court Administrator also qualify.³ A common example is unpaid child support: the Department for Children and Families can intercept your refund when arrears reach $50 or more, applying the money to current support first and then to back payments.⁴

Before any offset, the agency claiming the debt must mail a written notice to your last known address stating the amount and basis of the debt and its intent to request a setoff. You have 30 days to request a hearing in writing to contest it. Miss that window and you waive the right to challenge.⁵

If the Portal Says “Refund Issued” but Nothing Has Arrived

Once the status flips to issued, the problem is usually on the delivery side. If a paper check was mailed and you’ve moved, call 802-828-2865 to update your address, since state refund checks aren’t always forwarded by the postal service.

Entered the wrong bank account or routing number? If your bank rejects the deposit, the Department reissues the refund as a paper check to the address on your return.⁶ The harder scenario is when the wrong number happens to match a real account and the deposit goes through; recovering those funds usually means working with the bank directly.

For joint filers who lost part of a refund to one spouse’s debt, the other spouse can request their share. In child support offset cases, the current spouse has up to 30 days to make that request through the Department of Taxes.⁴

Homestead Declaration, Property Tax Credit, and Renter Credit

The same myVTax portal tracks Homestead Declarations, Property Tax Credit Claims, and Renter Credit Claims.⁷ Pick the matching option on the selection screen instead of Personal Income Tax Return Status. The Homestead and Property Tax Credit lookup needs only your SSN or ITIN and ZIP code; the Renter Credit lookup also asks for your last name.¹ These credits follow a different schedule than an income tax refund. Property Tax Credit adjustments flow through your town’s property tax bill rather than arriving as a state check, so the timeline depends partly on your municipality’s billing cycle.

1
Department of Taxes. Check Your Return or Refund Status
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Department of Taxes. Identity Theft
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Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 32 V.S.A. 5932 – Definitions
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Department for Children and Families. Enforcement Remedies
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Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 32 V.S.A. 5934 – Procedures for Setoff
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Department of Taxes. Forms You May Need
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Vermont Department of Taxes. Vermont Department of Taxes