Generally it takes the IRS three weeks to direct deposit the refund on your electronically filed personal tax return. If they mail you the check it takes about eight weeks. Filing on paper will take at a lot longer. There is an easy way to find out where your refund is.
First, go to this link
You will need to enter the following information
* Your Social Security Number (or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number)
* Your Filing Status
* The exact whole dollar amount of your refund
And VOILA you will get information on what is happening with your refund.
Just remember, if the IRS says they mailed the check last Friday, it probably means that it actually got to the post office next Friday. This is a great argument for having the IRS direct deposit your refund.
If it's been three or more months since you filed your return and you get the message that your return is still being processed, it's time to make a phone call. Call the IRS at 1-800-Tax-1040 (isn't that cute) to try to find out why the return is still being processed. Be prepared to wait on hold for a long time.
You can also get your refund status from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue but you must set up an account with a user name and password. Just what you need, another password. Here is the website to start.
Good Luck.