The IRS has confirmed it will start processing 2025 tax filings and refunds from January 26th, 2026. Key dates to be aware of are shown in the table below. See this detailed article for more information and expected refund processing schedule.
Tax Season Key Dates | Tax Related Activity |
|---|---|
| Jan 1st | Official start of the current tax season. You can start filing a federal tax return online or mailed-in paper returns, though the IRS generally will not accept and process tax returns until January 26th |
| Jan 15th | Final estimated tax quarterly payment due dates |
| Jan 26th | IRS E-file goes “live” allowing acceptance and processing of electronic tax returns for the vast majority of tax filers. Paper tax returns will begin processing a week or two later (see est. IRS refund schedule) |
| Feb 1st | Date by which you should have received a W-2 from employer(s) you worked for during the tax year. If not, contact their HR/Payroll department to resend tax documents. |
| Feb 1st | Deadline for receiving 1099 statements (factors in your AGI income) that report non-employee compensation, bank interest, dividends and distributions from a retirement plan. Financial institutions (e.g Vanguard, Fidelity) must also mail out 1099-B, 1099-S and 1099-MISC forms by this date. See what these forms are and if you will need one for your return |
| Feb 27th | PATH Act Lifts (estimated IRS date). Refund dates released for taxpayers who have filed electronically and claimed the EITC or ACTC. Impacted refund payments will generally start 8 to10 days after this date. See more on PATH updates and processing. |
| March 15th | S Corporation and Partnership tax returns or extension requests due |
| April 15th | *Tax Day* Last day for on-time filing of federal and state IRS income tax returns or for submitting extension requests (Form 4868). The IRS may extend this due to DC’s Emancipation day holiday. Residents in FEMA approved federal disaster zones will also get an automatic extension (see below). Otherwise all tax liabilities or payments must be made by this day to avoid interest and penalties. This includes returns with approved extensions to file. If you are unable to pay your taxes, you can apply for an IRS payment plan. |
| April 15th | Last day to make a tax filing year contribution to Traditional or Roth IRAs, Health Savings Account (HSA), SEP-IRAs. |
| April 15th | FBAR (Foreign Bank Account Report) forms due for taxpayers who have signature authority over $10,000 in total in foreign bank accounts in the prior year. Laws enacted last year change the standard FBAR due date to “tax day” (vs June 30th as in years past). No extensions are allowed and forms must be filed electronically. |
| May 15th | Tax Day for designated FEMA relief areas where the IRS provided tax payment and filing extensions. Individuals and households that reside or have a business in these areas may qualify for tax relief. The current list of eligible localities is always available on the IRS disaster relief page. |
| June 15th | U.S. citizens or resident aliens living abroad must file tax returns by this date (or request a four-month extension). See section below for more details. Any actual or estimated taxes are still due by Tax Day. |
| Oct 15th | Due date to file approved extensions for federal, state and S-Corp/Partnership income tax returns |
Although the IRS will not start accepting and processing tax returns until late January, people don’t need to wait until then to work on their taxes if they’re using online tax filing software packages like TurboTax and H&R Block.