Executive Order 14247, signed by President Trump on March 25, 2025, directed the Treasury Department and IRS to stop issuing paper checks for tax refunds and other federal payments by September 30, 2025. This mandate aimed to increase security, reduce costs, and fight fraud.
But as with all things having anything to do with taxation, there is now an exception.
The Service is saying that if you don’t provide direct deposit information on your return, they’ll mail you a notice asking you to provide your banking information or to explain why you can’t provide it. If you don’t respond within 30 days, the refund will be released as a paper check after six weeks.
There are many taxpayers who by design, don’t want electronic payments. Those include households without bank accounts, taxpayers living abroad, and some religious communities who face barriers to receiving refunds electronically. The IRS has said that it will provide further guidance where limited exceptions to the paper check phaseout will apply.
For whatever reason, they’re not mentioning people like me who would never want the IRS to have access to his checking account. I’ve seen screw ups on direct deposits that would curl your hair.
The President’s Executive Order also applies to the tax payments that people owe, saying that the government should only accept electronic payments. But for now, the IRS is still accepting paper checks and money orders.
Something tells me that no matter how you want to pay them in the future, even if you send them a check written on the back of a pig, they’ll be more than happy to cash it and take your money.
Let me leave you with this…
Major personnel layoffs are being reported around the country. Those from the past three months include, but aren’t limited to…
1 – Amazon recently announced another 16,000 job cuts following 14,000 in late 2025.
2 – UPS reported up to 30,000 operational job cuts as part of a restructuring strategy.
3 – Intel continued significant workforce reductions, totaling over 27,000 in 2025.
4 – Pinterest reduced its workforce by nearly 15% to prioritize AI-focused roles.
5 – Microsoft conducted major layoffs, totaling over 15,000 in 2025.
6 – Verizon implemented staff reductions, affecting roughly 15,000 in 2025.
AI will radically change the face of America in the next decade. Looking at this makes me glad I went through the nightmare of starting a business 37 years ago.
Some are predicting that 83M jobs will be lost given artificial intelligence worldwide in 2027 with only 69M new jobs being created. That’s a net loss of 14M.
And this is just the beginning.
I’m remembering the nightmare our country went through in the 90’s when manufacturing jobs were lost to the far east. Cheap labor and reliable modes of transportation created a situation where domestic manufacturers couldn’t compete.
And many of those employees never found comparable work.
I’m writing this because we don’t operate our businesses in a vacuum. Entrepreneurs must consider the future when planning for future growth.
There are many factors one must consider…
1 – Economists are only predicting one interest rate cut from the Fed this year, but that could change in a heartbeat given these layoffs. The Fed might need to drop the rates more to encourage hiring.
2 – The value of the dollar continues to plummet. The US Dollar Index as reported by the Wall Street Journal was under 94 for the first time in several years yesterday. It was at 103 at the beginning of last year.
Each dollar sitting in your checking accounts has lost more than 7% of its buying power in less than a year.
3 – The December 2025 rate of inflation was 2.7%. It has stubbornly sat between 3.1 and 2.6 for the past 6 months.
4 – And unemployment doesn’t look like it’s going to go in the right direction given all of these layoffs.
Make your plans carefully. Carefully plan your future.
The company you save might be your own.
As always, if you’re having difficulties with your accounting and tax work, I’m waiting for you to contact me.
We’re all going to get through this. Let’s get through it together.
Accounting Solutions Ltd. stands ready to complete our mission and purpose of protecting you, your family, and your business. Whether you need Payroll Services, or Accounting and Tax Work, you have but to ask. I’m here and I remain,
Sincerely yours,
Chris Amundson
President
Accounting Solutions Ltd.
773-267-7500
888-310-0300
www.AccountingSolutionsLtd.com
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