The Internal Revenue Service also will start accepting taxes as early as January 26.

IRS Direct File, which was offered in 25 states last year, has been discontinued. But one very-much underused, free program remains for 2026.

There were 161 million individual income tax returns filed to the IRS in 2024, possibly including yours. While not every American is required to file a tax return, most will – and there may be good ...