Checks in the mail: Delayed tax refunds on their way

HONOLULU—The State Tax Department has begun issuing delayed refunds from 2009 individual, corporate, and fiduciary income tax returns filed by the April 20, 2010 due date.

Taxpayers who requested their refunds to be directly deposited into their local bank accounts should receive their refunds on or before July 15, with an additional working day being added for out-of-state banks.

Taxpayers who opted to have their refunds issued via paper checks should expect to receive their refund checks by mail by July 30. Last week, the State printed 40,000 refund checks. An additional 40,000 checks will be printed this week, followed by 60,000 next week, and 30,000 during the last week of the month.

The State delayed 2009 tax refunds within the legally allowed 90-day refund period to help mitigate the State’s projected $721 million revenue shortfall for fiscal year 2010 (FY10), which ended on June 30, 2010.

In May, as a result of improving tax revenue collections for the first 10 months of FY10, the Department of Taxation began issuing state income tax refunds that were processed during the months of January and February. Approximately 208,000 tax filers, or 44 percent, have already received their tax refunds.

Taxpayers can check on their refund status by accessing the Department of Taxation’s website.