Internal Revenue Service United States Department of the Treasury
Level Basic Intermediate Advanced Military International

Refund and Amount of Tax Owed

U.S. Savings Bonds

Purchasing U.S. Savings Bonds

Taxpayers can choose to save part or all of their refund by requesting savings bonds on Form 8888. The specific details on how to purchase savings bonds with a federal tax refund are included in the Form 8888 Instructions.

In addition to direct deposits, taxpayers can allocate their refund to request up to three different savings bond registrations and receive a check. Form 8888 is now divided into four separate parts:

  • Part I - Complete this part for direct deposit of a portion of a refund to one or more accounts
  • Part II - Complete this part to buy paper bonds with part of a refund
  • Part III - Complete this part if taxpayers wish to receive part of their refund in a check
  • Part IV - Total allocation of refund - add the amounts for each part together, they must equal the total refund amount

Taxpayers can make bond purchases and add beneficiaries or co-owners, or anyone else.

Example

Mary's tax return shows she is due a refund of $548.00. She wants to buy a $500 savings bond. Using Form 8888, Mary can purchase the savings bond and elect to deposit the remaining $48 into her checking account.