The IRS Is Ready for Your 2025 Tax Return
Column distributed by Hearst Connecticut Media Group.
Links to resources referenced:
- Department of the Treasury: “Report on the Replacement of Direct File”
- https://waysandmeans.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Report-Replacement-of-Direct-File-2025.pdf
- Related column excerpt:
- “Direct File was the e-filing program that allowed ‘eligible taxpayers to file their federal individual income tax return online directly with the IRS at no direct cost to the user,’ quoting the Treasury Department’s October 2025 report to Congress, ‘Report on the Replacement of Direct File.’ Launched as a pilot program in 2023, Direct File was available to taxpayers in 25 states for tax year 2024, and nearly 300,000 returns were filed.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://waysandmeans.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Report-Replacement-of-Direct-File-2025.pdf
- IRS: E-file: Do your taxes for free
- https://www.irs.gov/e-file-do-your-taxes-for-free
- Related column excerpt:
- “Meanwhile, the Free File e-filing program is very much alive. Free File debuted in 2003 and has eight private-sector partners offering guided tax software products for tax year 2025. To qualify, you must have an adjusted gross income (AGI) of $89,000 or less. Note that each of the tax partners also sets its own eligibility requirements.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/e-file-do-your-taxes-for-free
- Internal Revenue Service Data Book 2024
- https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p55b.pdf
- Related column excerpt:
- “According to the Internal Revenue Service Data Book 2024, released in May 2025, 3.1 million taxpayers used the Free File program for fiscal year 2024.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p55b.pdf
- IRS: Use IRS Free File to conveniently file your return at no cost
- https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/use-irs-free-file-to-conveniently-file-your-return-at-no-cost
- Related column excerpt:
- “If you are above the $89,000 AGI mark, you can use Free File Fillable Forms -- electronic versions of IRS paper forms. The forms ‘are ideal for individuals who are comfortable preparing their own taxes using IRS instructions and publications,’ the IRS reported.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/use-irs-free-file-to-conveniently-file-your-return-at-no-cost
- IRS: “IRS announces first day of 2026 filing season; online tools and resources help with tax filing”
- https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-announces-first-day-of-2026-filing-season-online-tools-and-resources-help-with-tax-filing
- Related column excerpt:
- “The IRS expects to get around 164 million individual income tax returns in 2026, with most taxpayers filing electronically. The filing deadline for 2025 tax-year returns is April 15, 2026.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-announces-first-day-of-2026-filing-season-online-tools-and-resources-help-with-tax-filing
- IRS Schedule 1-A: Additional Deductions
- https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/f1040s1a--2025.pdf
- Related column excerpt:
- “There is a new schedule this year: Schedule 1-A. This form deals with recently enacted tax deductions: no taxes on tips, overtime or car loan interest, and an enhanced deduction for seniors.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/f1040s1a--2025.pdf
- IRS: About Form 1099-DA, Digital Asset Proceeds From Broker Transactions
- https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-1099-da
- Related column excerpt:
- “Form 1099-DA is used to report digital asset proceeds from broker transactions. You can find the instructions at the IRS webpage ‘About Form 1099-DA.’”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-1099-da
- IRS: Understanding your Form 1099-K
- https://www.irs.gov/businesses/understanding-your-form-1099-k
- Related column excerpt:
- “Form 1099-K is used for ‘payments you received for goods or services during the year’ involving payment apps or online marketplaces (aka third party settlement organizations), or payments through credit, debit or gift cards. The IRS webpage ‘Understanding Your Form 1099-K’ provides more details.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/businesses/understanding-your-form-1099-k
- IRS: Need someone to prepare your tax return?
- https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/choosing-a-tax-professional
- Related column excerpt:
- “A directory of federal tax preparers with credentials can be accessed through the IRS webpage ‘Need someone to prepare your tax return?’”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/choosing-a-tax-professional
- IRS: Contact your local IRS office
- https://www.irs.gov/help/contact-your-local-irs-office
- Related column excerpt:
- “The IRS offers taxpayer assistance at its ‘Contact your local IRS Office’ webpage.
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/help/contact-your-local-irs-office
- IRS: Free tax preparation for qualifying taxpayers
- https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
- Related column excerpt:
- “IRS-certified volunteers can be found at the ‘Free tax preparation for qualifying taxpayers’ webpage.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
- IRS: Where’s My Refund?
- https://www.irs.gov/wheres-my-refund
- Related column excerpt:
- “If you file and expect a refund, the ‘Where’s My Refund?’ IRS webpage will have details of your status generally around 24 hours after e-filing or four weeks if you file a paper return. Note that the IRS is phasing out paper tax-refund checks (due to the 2025 Presidential Executive Order 14247, ‘Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account’) and encourages you to establish a bank account (if you don’t have one) if you are expecting a tax refund.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/wheres-my-refund
- The White House: “Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account”
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/modernizing-payments-to-and-from-americas-bank-account/
- Related column excerpt:
- “If you file and expect a refund, the ‘Where’s My Refund?’ IRS webpage will have details of your status generally around 24 hours after e-filing or four weeks if you file a paper return. Note that the IRS is phasing out paper tax-refund checks (due to the 2025 Presidential Executive Order 14247, ‘Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account’) and encourages you to establish a bank account (if you don’t have one) if you are expecting a tax refund.”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/modernizing-payments-to-and-from-americas-bank-account/
- Federal Trade Commission Consumer Alert: “Hang up on unexpected calls saying you owe back taxes. Those are scams”
- https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2026/01/hang-unexpected-calls-saying-you-owe-back-taxes-those-are-scams?utm_source=govdelivery
- Related column excerpt”
- “On another tax-related matter, the Federal Trade Commission recently released a warning about phone scams that claim you owe back taxes. The scammers say they are from an official-sounding agency and claim that you haven’t paid your taxes. They offer to connect you with a ‘tax resolution officer’ and ‘help you apply for an “IRS liability reduction program”’ while seeking to charge you fees or steal your personal information.”
- Related column excerpt”
- https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2026/01/hang-unexpected-calls-saying-you-owe-back-taxes-those-are-scams?utm_source=govdelivery
- IRS: Tax Scams
- https://www.irs.gov/help/tax-scams
- Related column excerpt:
- “Find out more about efforts to combat fraud at the IRS webpage ‘Tax Scams.’”
- Related column excerpt:
- https://www.irs.gov/help/tax-scams