Income Tax Refund Reissue — How to Fix a Failed Refund

Updated: 16 July 2026 | incometax.gov.in | Services → Refund Reissue

If your income tax refund failed, first pre-validate a working bank account (My Profile → My Bank Accounts), then raise a Refund Reissue Request at incometax.gov.in → Services → Refund Reissue → Create Refund Reissue Request → select the validated account → e-verify with Aadhaar OTP or EVC. The reissued refund is typically credited within 2–4 weeks, and interest under Section 244A continues until the refund is granted.

2-4 wk

Typical credit time after a Refund Reissue Request is submitted
Indicative, not statutory. The account you select must show “Validated” on the portal — that is what fixes most failures.

Why Income Tax Refunds Fail — Common Reasons

Failure Reason	What Went Wrong	Fix Before Reissue
Account not pre-validated	Bank account in the ITR was never validated on the e-filing portal	My Profile → My Bank Accounts → Add/Revalidate the account; wait for “Validated” status
Account closed / dormant	The account was closed or frozen after filing, so the credit bounced	Add and validate a different active account; select it in the reissue request
IFSC changed (bank merger)	Old IFSC deactivated after bank mergers; ITR carried the old code	Re-add the account with the new IFSC and validate it
Name mismatch	Name in bank records does not match the name on PAN	Update KYC/name at the bank (or on PAN), then revalidate the account
PAN not linked to account	Bank has not seeded your PAN against the account	Submit PAN to the bank branch/net banking, then revalidate on the portal
Account not nominated for refund	Account is validated but the “Nominate for Refund” toggle was off	My Bank Accounts → enable “Nominate for Refund” on the validated account

Step 0 — Check Why Your Refund Failed

On incometax.gov.in, go to e-File → Income Tax Returns → View Filed Returns → View Details for the relevant year — the refund status and the failure reason are shown there. You can cross-check the bank-side dispatch status on the NSDL refund tracking page (tin.tin.nsdl.com — enter PAN + assessment year), and where the credit was routed through PFMS, on pfms.nic.in using “Know Your Payment”. Fix the cause shown before raising the reissue — otherwise the reissue fails for the same reason.

Pre-validate Your Bank Account (Do This First)

Open My Bank Accounts

Log in to incometax.gov.in → My Profile → My Bank Accounts. Existing accounts are listed with their validation status.
Add or Revalidate the Account

Click Add Bank Account (or Revalidate on a failed one). Enter the account number, the current IFSC (use the post-merger IFSC if your bank merged), account type and submit. Ensure the account is active, your PAN is seeded at the bank, and the name at the bank matches your PAN name.
Wait for “Validated” Status

Validation usually completes within a few hours to 1–2 days. Only accounts showing Validated appear in the refund reissue screen. Also enable “Nominate for Refund” on the account.

How to Raise a Refund Reissue Request

Go to Services → Refund Reissue

Log in to incometax.gov.in and open Services → Refund Reissue from the top menu. Any earlier reissue requests and their statuses are listed here.
Create Refund Reissue Request

Click Create Refund Reissue Request. The portal lists returns where a refund failed — select the relevant record (Tax Year and acknowledgment number).
Select the Validated Bank Account

Choose the pre-validated bank account where the refund should be credited. It does not have to be the account originally mentioned in the ITR — any validated account linked to your PAN works.
E-verify and Submit

Submit the request and e-verify with Aadhaar OTP or EVC (net banking/bank account EVC). Note the request reference number. The reissued refund is typically credited within 2–4 weeks; track it under Services → Refund Reissue and on the NSDL page.

Does Interest Under Section 244A Continue?

Yes. Interest under Section 244A accrues at 0.5% per month or part of a month until the refund is granted, so a failed-and-reissued refund generally arrives with interest computed up to the reissue. One caveat: where the delay is attributable to the taxpayer — for instance, an invalid or unvalidated bank account that you took months to fix — the department can exclude that period from interest. Fix the account and raise the reissue promptly. Remember that 244A interest is itself taxable in the year you receive it.

Still Stuck? Grievance Route (e-Nivaran / CPC)

If the reissue request stays pending for weeks, fails repeatedly despite a validated account, or the status shows Processed but no credit arrives, escalate:

Raise a grievance on the portal: Grievances → Submit Grievance (e-Nivaran) → select CPC-ITR → Refund related, and quote the reissue request reference with screenshots
Call the CPC helpline (numbers listed on incometax.gov.in under Contact Us) with your PAN and acknowledgment number
Confirm with your bank whether a credit arrived and was returned — ask for the return reason code
If a Section 245 adjustment against an old demand is the real issue, respond under Pending Actions → Response to Outstanding Demand instead of raising another reissue

Common Mistakes That Delay Refund Reissue

Raising the reissue request before the bank account shows “Validated” — it fails again for the same reason
Using the old IFSC of a merged bank while adding the account
Not enabling “Nominate for Refund” on the validated account
Name in bank records not matching the PAN name (initials vs full name, surname changes after marriage)
PAN not seeded with the bank account — validation succeeds only partially or EVC is unavailable
Forgetting to e-verify the reissue request — an unverified request is not processed
Filing a revised return just to change bank details — unnecessary; the reissue route is the correct fix

Tip: Keep one primary savings account permanently validated and nominated for refund on the portal, with PAN seeded and KYC name matching your PAN. Nearly every refund failure traces back to the bank account record, not to CPC processing.

Frequently Asked Questions

My income tax refund failed — what should I do first?

First find out why it failed. Log in to incometax.gov.in → e-File → Income Tax Returns → View Filed Returns → View Details — the refund failure reason is shown there (e.g., account closed, invalid IFSC, account not pre-validated, name mismatch). Fix the underlying issue by pre-validating a working bank account under My Profile → My Bank Accounts, then raise a Refund Reissue Request under Services → Refund Reissue. Without fixing the bank account first, the reissue will fail again for the same reason.

How long does it take to get the refund after a reissue request?

There is no statutory deadline, but in practice most reissued refunds are credited within about 2–4 weeks of submitting the request, provided the selected bank account is validated and EVC-enabled. Track the status under Services → Refund Reissue (the request status changes from Submitted to Processed) and on the NSDL refund tracking page. If nothing moves for over a month, raise a grievance through e-Nivaran on the portal.

Do I lose interest under Section 244A if my refund fails and is reissued?

No. Interest under Section 244A at 0.5% per month (or part of a month) is computed by the department up to the date the refund is granted. A refund failure caused by the department’s side does not stop your entitlement; however, where the delay is attributable to the taxpayer (for example, an unvalidated or wrong bank account), the department can exclude that period from interest. Practically: fix your bank account quickly — the sooner the reissue succeeds, the cleaner the interest computation. The 244A interest received is taxable as income in the year of receipt.

Why does the portal not show my bank account in the refund reissue request?

The Refund Reissue screen only lists bank accounts that are pre-validated on the portal. If your account is missing, go to My Profile → My Bank Accounts → Add Bank Account, enter the account number and IFSC, and submit for validation — the status usually updates within a few hours to 1–2 days. The account must be active, linked to your PAN, and the name at the bank should match your PAN name. Once the status shows "Validated", it will appear in the reissue request dropdown.

My bank merged and the IFSC changed — is that why my refund failed?

Very likely, yes. After bank mergers (e.g., the 2019–2020 PSU bank mergers), old IFSC codes were deactivated. If your ITR carried the old IFSC, the refund credit bounces. Remedy: add the account again on the portal with the new IFSC, pre-validate it, and raise a Refund Reissue Request selecting the re-validated account. You do not need to file a revised return just to correct bank details — the reissue route handles it.

Can I get the reissued refund in a different bank account than the one in my ITR?

Yes. The reissue request lets you select any bank account that is pre-validated against your PAN on the portal — it does not have to be the account you originally mentioned in the ITR. Add and validate the new account first, then choose it while creating the Refund Reissue Request and e-verify the request with Aadhaar OTP or EVC.

How many times can I raise a refund reissue request?

The portal allows you to raise a fresh reissue request if the earlier one also fails — there is no published hard limit. But repeated failures almost always mean the root cause is unfixed: account not validated, dormant/closed account, name mismatch with PAN, or PAN not linked to the account at the bank. Resolve the cause (update KYC at the bank, link PAN to the account, re-validate on the portal) before submitting again. If it keeps failing, raise an e-Nivaran grievance to CPC with screenshots.

Refund reissue request shows "Processed" but money has not arrived — what now?

Allow a few working days after the status turns Processed — the credit travels from CPC to the refund banker (SBI) to your bank. Check the NSDL refund status page (tin.tin.nsdl.com) with your PAN and assessment year for the bank-level dispatch date, and check PFMS if the status references it. Confirm with your bank whether a credit was returned. If the amount is still untraceable after 2–3 weeks, raise a grievance under e-Nivaran on the portal selecting CPC-ITR → Refund related, quoting the reissue request reference.

Income Tax Refund Status Refund Processing Timeline ITR e-Verification PAN-Aadhaar Link ITR Filing Service

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