What’s The Difference Between Return Accepted And Return Approved? We have the answer to this very common question, “What’s The Difference Between Return Accepted And Return Approved?” If you have filed your 2016 tax return and went to the IRS Where’s My Refund website, IRS2Go App, or received an email or text from your tax filing website, you most likely have seen the term Return Accepted but not on the Return Approved.  Versus.        A tax return is in “Return Received” or “Return Accepted” means that your tax return has passed the initial screening by the IRS. This includes