Many people count on their federal tax refunds to help pay the holiday bills that arrive in January.

This year, however, almost 500,000 Alabamians won't receive their refunds until after Feb. 15, 2017 due to a new law aimed at reducing identity theft and fraud.

The Internal Revenue Service will hold refunds until mid-February 2017 for people claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit. The additional time allows for closer scrutiny for the tens of millions of people who claim the credits.

The safeguards could slow other refunds, too, as more returns are subject to additional review, the IRS said.

''This is an important change as some of these taxpayers are used to getting an early refund," IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said. "We want people to be aware of the change for their planning purposes during the holidays. We don't want anyone caught by surprise if they get their refund a few weeks later than in previous years."

The IRS will hold the entire refund - even the part not associated with the EITC or ACTC - until after the Feb. 15 deadline.

As many as 26 million people - including 498,000 Alabamians - filed for EITC credits in 2015 with the average national refund amount of $2,482. The average EITC refund in Alabama was $2,825. The child tax credit, worth up to $1,000 per eligible child, was claimed by 22.4 million people in the U.S. in 2015.

The new law won't change filing dates or how returns are submitted. Once the deadline passes, the IRS said most refunds will be issued within 21 days after being accepted for processing.

The IRS will begin accepting electronic tax returns on Jan. 23, 2017, though many Americans opt to file earlier. The filing deadline for 2016 returns is April 18, 2017 - three days later than normal - because April 15, 2017 falls on a Saturday and Emancipation Day, which is celebrated in Washington, D.C., is commemorated on Monday, April 17.