The official start date of the nation's 2024 tax season, when the IRS will begin accepting and processing 2023 tax returns, is Monday, Jan. 29, the agency announced.
The IRS expects more than 128.7 million individual tax returns to be filed by the April 15 tax deadline.
The agency reminded taxpayers that they do not need to wait until that date to work on their taxes if they use software companies or tax professionals. IRS Free File will also be available starting Jan. 12 in advance of the filing season opening.
The IRS noted some of the service improvements it continues to make as a result of funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Some of the new and expanded tools and resources include the following:
● An expanded in-person service that meets taxpayers where they are by opening or reopening Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs);
● Increased help available on the toll-free line and an expanded customer call back feature designed to significantly reduce wait times;
● Improvements to the Where's My Refund? tool, which is the IRS' most widely used taxpayer service tool;
● Enhanced paperless processing that will enable taxpayers to submit all correspondence, non-tax forms and responses to notices digitally and that will be able to e-File 20 additional tax forms;
● An enhanced IRS Individual Online Account that includes chat, as well as the option to schedule and cancel future payments, revise payment plans and validate and save bank accounts; and
● The new pilot tax-filing service called Direct File, which gives eligible taxpayers a new choice to file their 2023 federal tax returns online, for free, directly with the IRS. The pilot will be rolled out in phases as final testing is completed and is expected to be widely available in mid-March to eligible taxpayers in the participating states.
"As our transformation efforts take hold, taxpayers will continue to see marked improvement in IRS operations in the upcoming filing season," said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. "IRS employees are working hard to make sure that new funding is used to help taxpayers by making the process of preparing and filing taxes easier."
For most taxpayers, the deadline to file their personal federal tax return, pay any tax owed or request an extension to file is Monday, April 15.
Taxpayers living in Maine or Massachusetts have until April 17, due to the Patriot's Day and Emancipation Day holidays. If a taxpayer resides in a federally declared disaster area, he or she may have additional time to file.
The IRS also encouraged taxpayers to take steps now to Get Ready to file their 2023 individual federal tax returns.