I filed the 2020 1040 by paper (mailed it) in April 2021 and still have not received the refund (Direct Deposit)
I tried the Track the Refund site on IRS and provided all the accurate info. The site keeps giving me the following message
We cannot provide any information about your refund. Be sure to: verify your filing date; check with your tax preparer If you filed a complete and accurate tax return, your refund should be issued within six weeks of the received date. However, processing may take longer under certain circumstances.
Looks like a Boiler Plate message.
It is impossible to reach anyone in IRS via phone these days. What should I do? I mailed my paper return and USPS tracking confirmed it was delivered. How do I even know if IRS has it?
Per the IRS webpage about refund delays:
Our phone and walk-in representatives can research the status of your refund if it’s been 21 days or more since you filed electronically, more than 6 weeks since you mailed your paper return or if the Where’s My Refund? tool directs you to contact us.
Additionally, as far as the Where’s My Refund tool, that is fairly delayed from the mail date:
You can use the tool to start checking on the status of your return within 24 hours after we have received your e-filed return or 4 weeks after you mail a paper return.
While it’s likely they’re simply more behind than they let on, the correct thing to do at this stage if you’re concerned about them receiving your return is to call the IRS line and talk to an agent.