What is the Treasury quarterly refunding?
Updated .
Drafted with AI assistance from official sources; checked against the sources listed below.
Four times a year, in February, May, August and November, the US Treasury says how it plans to borrow over the coming months. This is the quarterly refunding. It is the main place where Treasury changes the size of its note and bond auctions, and the week its new 10-year note and 30-year bond are auctioned.
The two release days
Each refunding has two release days in the same week. In August 2026 they were:
| When | What Treasury released |
|---|---|
| Monday 3 August 2026, 3:00 p.m. Eastern | Financing estimates: how much Treasury expects to borrow in the current quarter and the next |
| Wednesday 5 August 2026, 8:30 a.m. Eastern | The policy statement (the refunding announcement), the advisory committee's report and minutes, and the tentative auction schedule |
The next refunding is due on 2 and 4 November 2026, by Treasury's own published schedule. The quarterly refunding page lists each refunding's release days and documents.
What the announcement covers
- Auction sizes. Whether the amounts of the regular note and bond auctions stay the same, rise or fall over the coming quarter. Bill sizes change week by week and are not set here.
- The refunding auctions. The 3-year note, 10-year note and 30-year bond auctioned the following week, with the 10-year and 30-year as new issues. In the other eight months those two are reopenings.
- The tentative schedule. The dates of every regular auction until the next refunding. The guide to the Treasury auction schedule explains how to read it.
- Buybacks. When Treasury plans to repurchase older securities, with its own tentative schedule, shown on the Treasury buybacks page.
Who advises Treasury
The Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee (TBAC) meets in refunding week and sends its recommendations to the Treasury Secretary. Its members come from banks and investment firms. Its report and minutes are published with the policy statement, so anyone can read the advice and compare it with what Treasury announced.
What the refunding cannot tell you
- The size of each auction. Every auction still gets its own announcement a few days before it, with the exact amount.
- Where yields will go. The refunding says how much Treasury plans to borrow, not the price it will get. 500metrics shows each auction's result once Treasury publishes it.
Sources for this page (2)
- home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financing-the-government/quarterly-refunding/most-recent-quarterly-refunding-documents: the August 2026 refunding: financing estimates released at 3:00 p.m. on Monday 3 August, the policy statement and the advisory committee's report at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday 5 August; the next releases scheduled for 2 and 4 November 2026; the tentative auction and buyback schedules published with the refunding (checked )
- home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financing-the-government/quarterly-refunding: refundings take place in February, May, August and November; the Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee is made up of senior representatives of investment funds and banks
Sources and licence
Sources and licence
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