IRS Begins Filing Season, Says E-File Refunds Should Arrive in 21 Days
IRS began accepting returns Jan. 26 and said direct-deposit refunds from e-filed returns should take 21 days or less.
Overview
The Internal Revenue Service began accepting federal tax returns on Jan. 26 and said taxpayers who e-file and choose direct deposit should receive refunds within 21 days, with the agency expecting 164 million returns by April 15, 2026.
The filing season could be strained because the IRS's workforce fell from about 102,000 at the start of 2025 to roughly 74,000 after firings and layoffs, the National Taxpayer Advocate warned.
President Donald Trump said in a Jan. 29 Cabinet meeting that "record-setting" refunds are coming, while analysts projected the average refund could be about $1,000 higher than last year's $3,167.
IRS records show more than 165 million individual returns were processed last year with 94% submitted electronically and an average refund of $3,167.
The IRS said most refunds for the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit should be available by March 2 for taxpayers receiving direct deposit.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources generally present this story neutrally: they prioritize factual IRS guidance, timelines, and eligibility rules, and attribute warnings to the national taxpayer advocate. Language is informational, not evaluative; perspectives are tied to named sources and concrete data, minimizing omission and editorialized framing while foregrounding practical taxpayer instructions.