WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service announced that the nation's filing season will begin on Monday, January 24, 2022, when the tax agency will begin accepting and processing returns for tax year 2021.

The January 24 start date for individual taxpayers gives the IRS time to perform the programming and testing that is critical to ensuring IRS systems are running smoothly. The updated schedule helps ensure that eligible individuals can claim the proper amount of the Child Tax Credit after comparing their 2021 advance credits and claim any remaining stimulus money as a Refund Recovery Credit when they file their 2021 tax return.

“Planning for the nation's tax season process is a huge undertaking, and IRS teams have worked tirelessly over the past few months to prepare,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “The pandemic continues to create challenges, but the IRS is reminding people that there are important steps they can take to help ensure their tax return and refund do not face processing delays. Filing electronically with direct deposit and avoiding a paper tax return is more important than ever this year. And we urge more attention to be paid to those who received an Economic Impact Payment or Advance Child Tax Credit last year. People should make sure they report the correct amount on their tax return to avoid delays.”

The IRS encourages everyone to have all the information they need to be in the best position to file a complete and accurate return. Having an accurate tax return can prevent processing delays, refund delays, and subsequent notices from the IRS. This is especially important for people who received advance payments of Child Tax Credit or Economic Impact Payments in 2021; You will need the amounts of these payments when you prepare your tax return. The IRS is sending special letters to recipients and they can also check the amounts on IRS.gov.

Like last year, there will be people filing 2021 tax returns who, while not required to file, will need to do so to claim a Refund Recovery Credit or reconcile advance payments of the Child Tax Credit. Also, people who don't usually file returns may get other credits.

Deadline of April 18 for majority

The deadline to file 2021 tax returns is Monday, April 18, 2022 for most taxpayers. By law, Washington, DC holidays impact tax deadlines for everyone in the same way as federal holidays. The Emancipation Day holiday on April 16 in the District of Columbia moves the deadline to April 18 for everyone except taxpayers who live in Maine or Massachusetts. They have until April 19, 2022 to file their returns due to the Patriots Day holiday on April 18 in those states. Taxpayers requesting an extension will have until Monday, October 17, 2022 to file the return.

Are you waiting for the processing of previous tax returns? People can still file 2021 returns

Rettig noted that IRS employees continue to work hard in critical areas affected by the pandemic, including processing last year's tax returns and record levels of phone calls received.

“In many areas we are unable to provide the amount of service and compliance that our taxpayers and our tax system deserve and need. This is frustrating for taxpayers, for IRS employees and for me,” Rettig said. “IRS employees want to do more, and in 2022 we will continue to do as much as possible with the resources available to us. And we will continue to look for ways to improve. We want to deliver as much as possible while protecting the health and safety of our employees and taxpayers. The additional resources would help our employees do more in 2022 and beyond."

The IRS continues to reduce the inventory of individual tax returns from prior years that have not been fully processed. As of December 3, 2021, the IRS has processed nearly 169 million tax returns. All 2020 paper and electronic individual refund statements received prior to April 2021 have been processed if the statement was error-free or did not require additional review.

Taxpayers generally will not need to wait for their 2020 tax return to be fully processed to file their 2021 tax returns and can file when they are ready.

Key information to help taxpayers

The IRS encourages people to use online resources before calling. Last filing season, as a result of COVID-era tax changes and broader pandemic challenges, IRS phone systems received more than 145 million calls from January 1 to May 17, more than four times more calls than in an average year. In addition to IRS.gov, the IRS has a variety of other free options available to help taxpayers, ranging from free assistance at Volunteer Assistance to Taxpayers and Tax Counseling for the Elderly locations across the country to the availability of the IRS Free File program.

"Our phone volumes continue to hold at record levels," Rettig said. “We urge people to go to IRS.gov and set up an online account to help them access information more quickly. We have invested in developing new online capabilities to make this a quick and easy way for taxpayers to get the information they need.”

The average tax refund last year was more than $2,800. More than 160 million individual tax returns are expected to be filed for the 2021 tax year, with the vast majority due by the traditional April filing deadline.

In general, the IRS anticipates that most taxpayers will receive their refund within 21 days after e-filing, using direct deposit, and if there are no problems with their tax return. The IRS encourages taxpayers and tax professionals to file their returns electronically. To avoid processing delays, individuals should avoid filing paper returns whenever possible.

By law, the IRS cannot issue a refund involving the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit before mid-February. The law provides this additional time to help the IRS stop the issuance of fraudulent refunds and claims.

Some returns, filed electronically or on paper, may require a manual review delaying processing if our systems detect a possible error or missing information, or there is suspicion of identity theft or fraud. Some of these situations require us to contact taxpayers, but others do not. This job requires special handling by an IRS employee, so in these cases, the IRS may take longer than the normal 21 days to issue any related refunds. In those cases where the IRS can correct the return without the need to send correspondence, the IRS will send an explanation to the taxpayer.

File electronically and choose direct deposit

To expedite refunds, the IRS encourages taxpayers to file electronically with direct deposit as soon as they have all the information they need to file an accurate return. If the return includes errors or is incomplete, it may require additional review which may delay the tax refund. Having all the information available when preparing your 2021 tax return can reduce errors and avoid processing delays.

Most individual taxpayers file the Form 1040 PDF or  Form 1040-SR PDF from the IRS once they receive Forms W-2 and other income information from your employers, issuers such as state agencies, and payers. The IRS has incorporated recent tax law changes into the forms and instructions and shared the updates with its partners who develop the software used by individuals and tax professionals to prepare and file their returns. Forms 1040 and 1040-SR and associated instructions are now available on IRS.gov. For the latest IRS forms and instructions, visit the IRS website at IRS.gov/forms (In English).

Free File available from January 14

Free file IRS It will begin operations on January 14 when participating providers will accept completed returns and hold them until they can be electronically filed with the IRS. Many business tax preparation software companies and tax professionals will also accept and prepare tax returns by January 24 to submit when IRS systems open.

The IRS encourages people to file their tax returns electronically to minimize errors and get faster refunds, plus have all the information they need to file an accurate return to avoid delays. The program Free file IRS allows taxpayers who earned $73,000 or less in 2021 to file their taxes electronically for free using software provided by commercial tax filing companies. More information will be available on Free File later this week.

In addition to Free file of the IRS, the programs of Volunteer Assistance to Taxpayers and Tax Advice for the Elderly The IRS offer free basic tax return preparation to qualified individuals.

Watch for letters from the IRS about advance payments of the Child Tax Credit and third round of Economic Impact Payments

The IRS began sending Letter 6419, 2021 Anticipated CTC, in late December 2021 and will continue through January.

The letter contains important information that can help ensure the statement is accurate. People who received advance payments from the CTC can also check the amount of their payments through the Child Tax Credit Update Portal Available at IRS.gov.

Eligible taxpayers who received advance payments of the Child Tax Credit must file a 2021 tax return to receive the second half of the credit. Eligible taxpayers who did not receive advance payments of the Child Tax Credit can claim the full credit when filing a tax return.

The IRS will begin issuing Letter 6475, Your Third Economic Impact Payment, to people who received a third payment in 2021 in late January. While most eligible people have already received their stimulus payments, this letter will help people determine if they are eligible to claim the Refund recovery credit and they must file a 2021 tax return to do so. People can also use online account from the IRS to view the amounts of your Economic Impact Payments.

Both letters include important information that can help people accurately file their 2021 tax return. If the return includes errors or is incomplete, it may require additional review while the IRS corrects the error that may delay the tax refund. Using this information when preparing a tax return electronically can reduce errors and avoid processing delays.

The fastest way for eligible individuals to get their 2021 tax refund, which will include their Allowable Child Tax Credit and Refund Recovery Credit, is by filing electronically and choosing the direct deposit.

Tips to make filing taxes easier

To avoid processing delays and speed up refunds, the IRS urges people to follow these steps:

• Organize and collect 2021 tax files, including Social Security Numbers, Personal Taxpayer Identification Numbers, Adoption Taxpayer Identification Numbers, and new personal identification numbers for identity protection valid for the calendar year 2022.
• Check IRS.gov for the latest tax information, including the latest information about reconciling advance payments of the Child Tax Credit or claiming a Refund Recovery Credit for missing stimulus payments. No need to call.
• Set up or sign in securely to IRS.gov/account to access personal tax account information, including balance, payments, and tax files, including adjusted gross income.
• perform the estimated tax payments for 2021 by Tuesday, January 18, 2022 to help avoid a bill at tax time and potential penalties.
• Individuals can use a bank account, prepaid debit card, or mobile app to use direct deposit and will need to provide account and routing numbers. Learn how to open a bank account FDIC insured or using the tool localization of national savings and credit cooperatives.
• File a complete and accurate return electronically when you're ready and choose direct deposit for the fastest refund.

Tax Season Key Dates

There are several important dates for taxpayers to keep in mind for this year's tax filing season.

• 14 January: IRS Free File begins operations. Taxpayers can start filing through IRS Free File partners; tax returns will be transmitted to the IRS beginning January 24. Tax software companies are also accepting tax filings in advance.
   
• January 18: Due date for the payment of estimated taxes for the fourth quarter of tax year 2021.
   
• 24 January: The IRS kicks off the 2022 filing season. 2021 individual tax returns are being accepted and processing begins.
   
• 28 January: Earned Income Tax Credit Awareness Day to raise awareness of the valuable tax credits available to many people, including the option of using previous year's income to qualify.
   
• 18 April: Deadline to file the 2021 tax return or request an extension and pay any taxes due due to the Emancipation Day holiday in Washington, DC, even for those who live outside the area.
   
• April 19: Deadline to file the 2021 tax return or request an extension and pay taxes due for those living in MA or ME due to the Patriots Day holiday.
   
• 17 October: Filing deadline for those requesting an extension on their 2021 tax returns.

Plan

It's never too early to prepare for tax filing season ahead. For more tips and resources, check out the page Prepare yourself at IRS.gov.