Legal Definitions - tax refund

Definition: A tax refund is money that a taxpayer receives from the government because they paid more taxes than they owed. It is returned by the taxing authority, such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the United States. Tax refunds are also known as tax rebates.

• John filed his tax return and found out that he overpaid his taxes by $500. He received a tax refund of $500 from the government.
• Mary received a tax refund of $1,000 because she had too much tax withheld from her paycheck throughout the year.

These examples illustrate how taxpayers can receive money back from the government if they paid more taxes than they owed. Tax refunds are a way for taxpayers to get back the money they overpaid and can be used for various purposes, such as paying bills or saving for the future.