IRS milyonlarca Amerikalıya 43 milyar $ ‘Trump Bump’ gönderdi. Çekinizi aldınız mı?

The IRS just sent a $43 billion ‘Trump Bump’ to millions of Americans — did you get your check?

Jing Pan

Wed, August 19, 2026 at 1:05 PM GMT+3 5 min read

Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.

The IRS handed Americans a much bigger pile of cash in 2026 — and the White House is calling it the "Trump Bump."

The windfall came in the form of tax refunds. By the end of the 2026 filing season, the IRS had issued $296 billion in taxpayer refunds, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) (1). That's $43 billion more than the year before — a 17% jump.

Must Read

• Jeff Bezos backs a platform that lets anyone invest in rental homes for as little as $100 — 6 ways to build wealth like a landlord without actually being one

• JPMorgan sees gold hitting $5,000/oz by Q4 — and savvy investors are protecting their wealth with a tax-advantaged Gold IRA. Get your free guide from Priority Gold

• The tax breaks in Trump's 'big beautiful bill' expire after 2028. Here are 4 moves to make before the window closes

And it wasn't simply because more people received refunds.

The average refund climbed by $333, or 11%, to $3,275, up from $2,942 during the comparable period in 2025. The IRS also sent out over 8 million more refunds this year.

The White House seized on the numbers, touting (2) the increase as a "Trump Bump" for American taxpayers.

So what's behind the extra money?

The GAO pointed to tax changes enacted under President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which created new deductions millions of taxpayers could claim when filing their 2025 returns. Among them were the much-publicized "no tax on tips" and "no tax on overtime" provisions.

Those tax breaks received plenty of attention during filing season. What has drawn far less attention is what happened afterward: taxpayers collectively received $43 billion more in refunds than they did a year earlier.

Trump, for his part, did offer taxpayers expecting bigger checks a characteristically simple piece of advice earlier this year.

"Don't spend all of this money in one place!" he wrote (3).

For many households, that raises an immediate question: What's the smartest way to use a sudden cash infusion?

Whether you're thinking about shoring up your finances, preparing for uncertainty or putting that extra money to work, here are a few ways Americans could consider investing their potential windfall.

'The best thing to do,' according to Warren Buffett

The U.S. stock market has been a powerful engine of wealth creation. Trump has pointed to that strength, stating (4) that "the only thing that's really going up big? It's the stock market and your 401(k)s."

The benchmark S&P 500 gained 19% in the last 12 months and is up roughly 73% over the past five years.

Of course, consistently picking winning stocks isn't easy. That's why legendary investor Warren Buffett argues that most people don't need to pick individual companies at all to benefit from the stock market's long-term growth.

"In my view, for most people, the best thing to do is own the S&P 500 index fund," Buffett has famously stated (5). This approach gives investors exposure to 500 of America's largest companies across a wide range of industries, providing instant diversification without the need for constant monitoring or active trading.

The beauty of this approach is its accessibility — anyone, regardless of wealth, can take advantage of it. Even small amounts can grow over time with tools like Acorns, a popular app that automatically invests your spare change.

Signing up for Acorns takes just minutes: link your cards, and Acorns will round up each purchase to the nearest dollar, investing the difference — your spare change — into a diversified portfolio.

With Acorns, you can invest in an S&P 500 ETF with as little as $5 — and, if you sign up today with a recurring investment, Acorns will add a $20 bonus to help you begin your investment journey.

Read More: Millionaires under 43 hold only 25% of their wealth in stocks. Here's where their money is actually going

Protect your wealth with a time-tested safe haven

If a larger-than-usual refund landed in your account this year, putting a portion into hard assets that have stood the test of time could be a strategic move — especially in uncertain economic environments.

As Ray Dalio, founder of the world's largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, recently said, "the most important thing is to have a well-diversified portfolio."

And when it comes to hedging against "bad times," he has repeatedly pointed to one asset in particular: gold.

In an interview with CNBC, Dalio said that "people don't have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio," adding that "when bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier."

Gold has long been considered a go-to safe haven. It can't be printed out of thin air like fiat money and because it's not tied to any single currency or economy, investors often flock to it during periods of economic turmoil or geopolitical uncertainty, driving up its value.

Over the past five years, as inflation continued to erode the value of paper currency and investors looked for protection outside traditional stocks, gold has climbed 148%.

Other prominent voices see further potential. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has said that in this environment, gold can "easily" rise to $10,000 an ounce.

One way to invest in gold that can also provide significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Goldco.

Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it a compelling potential option for those wanting to ensure their retirement funds are diversified during rough economic times.

Goldco offers free shipping and access to a library of retirement resources. Plus, the company will match up to 10% of qualified purchases in free silver.

If you're curious whether this is the right investment to diversify your portfolio, you can download your free gold and silver information guide today. Just keep in mind that gold is typically best used as one part of a well-diversified portfolio, not a wholesale replacement.

Let your cash hatch its own income

You don't need a massive investment portfolio to start building wealth. Even your spare cash — such as a tax refund — can earn income, rather than sitting idle in a low-yield account.

A high-yield account like a Wealthfront Cash Account can be a great place to grow your uninvested cash, offering both competitive interest rates and easy access to your money when you need it.

A Wealthfront Cash Account currently offers a base APY of 3.30% through program banks, and new clients can get an extra 0.75% boost during their first three months on up to $150,000 for a total variable APY of 4.05%.

That's 10 times the national deposit savings rate, according to the FDIC's July report.

Additionally, Wealthfront is offering new clients who enable direct deposit ($1,000/mo minimum) to their Cash Account and open and fund a new investment account an additional 0.25% APY increase with no expiration date or balance limit, meaning your APY could be as high as 4.30%.

With no minimum balances or account fees, as well as 24/7 withdrawals and free domestic wire transfers, your funds remain accessible at all times. Plus, you get access to up to $8M FDIC Insurance eligibility through program banks.

Get expert guidance

A larger tax refund can create opportunities, but the right move depends on your broader financial picture — including your income, debt, retirement savings, investment goals and tolerance for risk.

For investors with substantial portfolios, those decisions can become increasingly nuanced. Managing withdrawals, minimizing tax exposure, and ensuring long-term sustainability often requires greater coordination and strategic planning.

In these cases, working with a financial advisor can help reduce costly mistakes.

If you have a portfolio of $250,000 or more, platforms like WiserAdvisor can connect you with vetted professionals who specialize in this kind of planning.

Simply answer a few questions about your savings, retirement timeline and overall investment portfolio.

From there, WiserAdvisor reviews its network to match you — for free — with up to three vetted, reputable advisors aligned with your specific needs.

You can then schedule no-obligation consultations with your matches to determine who is the best fit for your long-term goals.

WiserAdvisor is a matching service and does not provide financial advice directly. All matched advisors are third parties, and specific financial results are not guaranteed.

You May Also Like

• A single line on your car insurance policy could be inflating your premium by up to 30% — here's what to change

• Dave Ramsey warns nearly 50% of Americans are making 1 big Social Security mistake. Here's what it is and 3 simple steps to fix it ASAP

• Robert Kiyosaki says China is 'dumping' the US as America piles on debt. Fortify your riches with 4 key assets

• Here are the 7 top habits of 'quietly wealthy' Americans. How many do you follow?

Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise's best stories and exclusive interviews first — clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.

Article Sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.

U.S. Government Accountability Office (); @PressSec/ X (); @RealDonaldTrump/ Truth Social (); NTDTV/ YouTube (); CNBC ()

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.