When Does The 2017 Tax Season Start For Filing My Tax Return and Getting My Refund

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This time of year I get a lot of questions on when the IRS will allow people to file their taxes and when (if applicable) refunds will be paid.  For the 2016-2017 tax season the IRS e-File (online tax filing) system will open on Monday, January 23rd. You can technically submit as early as January 1st via your tax provider or online filing software, but the IRS will not process until it opens up it’s e-File system. Other key dates for the upcoming tax season are shown in the table below.

2016-2017 Tax Season Filing Key Dates and Deadlines

2017 Deadline
Tax Related Activity
January 1, 2017First day to file a 2016 tax return, though the IRS generally will not accept e-file and free file returns until the date below. Even paper based filings won't be processed till later in the month
January 23, 2017IRS E-file to go live, allowing submission of electronic tax returns for the vast majority of tax filers. Paper tax returns will begin processing from this date as well
January 31, 2017Date by which you should have received a W-2 from employers you worked for during the tax year. If not, contact their HR/Payroll department to resend tax documents
February 1, 2017Deadline for 1099 statements (factors in your AGI income) that report non-employee compensation, bank interest, dividends and distributions from a retirement plan. This date is also the deadline for self-employed individuals to file and pay in full their fourth-quarter estimated tax payment
February 16, 2017Financial institutions (e.g Vanguard, Fidelity) must 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
March 15, 2017S Corporation and Partnership tax returns due
April 18, 2017*Tax Day* Last day for filing federal income tax returns and extension requests. Since April 15th is a Saturday and Monday is the Emancipation Day holiday the due date has been shifted out to Tuesday, April 18th.
April 18, 2017Deadline for filing state income tax returns (for most states) and extension requests. Last day to make a contribution to a Traditional or Roth IRA, Health Savings Account (HSA), SEP-IRA or 401(k)
April 18, 2017FBAR (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.
June 15, 2017U.S. citizens or resident aliens living abroad must file tax returns and pay any taxes due by this date (or file for a four-month extension)
October 15, 2017Filing approved extended federal, state and S-Corp/Partnership income tax returns Note: you still need to file for an extension request by April 17th
April 15, 2020Filing a 2016 tax amendment. You can file an amended or previous year return anytime, but you have a deadline of 3 years from the original due date to claim any tax refund.

After filing your return and if eligible the next most common question people will ask is when will I get my IRS tax refund? Well for 2017, the following table shows the estimated refund schedule and processing times. See more details and comments here, The table below shows the date your refund will likely be processed and paid based on the week your return is accepted by the IRS. 

2016-2017 Tax Season IRS Refund Schedule

IRS Accepts Return After
(WMR status = Return Received)		IRS Return Accepted Before (End Date)Estimated Refund Due Date (via Direct Deposit)Estimated Refund Due Date (via Paper Check)
January 23, 2017January 27, 2017February 3, 2017February 6, 2017
January 27, 2017February 3, 2017February 10, 2017February 13, 2017
February 3, 2017February 10, 2017February 17, 2017February 20, 2017
February 10, 2017February 15, 2017February 24, 2017February 27, 2017
February 15, 2017February 24, 2017March 3, 2017March 6, 2017
February 24, 2017March 3, 2017March 10, 2017March 13, 2017
March 3, 2017March 10, 2017March 17, 2017March 20, 2017
March 10, 2017March 17, 2017March 24, 2017March 27, 2017
March 17, 2017March 24, 2017April 1, 2017April 3, 2017
March 24, 2017March 31, 2017April 9, 2017April 13, 2017
March 31, 2017April 7, 2017April 18, 2017April 20, 2017
April 7, 2017April 14, 2017April 25, 2017April 27, 2017
April 14, 2017April 21, 2017May 2, 2017May 4, 2017
April 21, 2017April 28, 2017May 9, 2017May 11, 2017
April 28, 2017May 5, 2017May 16, 2017May 18, 2017
May 5, 2017May 12, 2017May 23, 2017May 25, 2017
May 12, 2017May 19, 2017May 30, 2017June 1, 2017
May 19, 2017May 26, 2017June 6, 2017June 8, 2017
May 26, 2017June 2, 2017June 13, 2017June 15, 2017
June 2, 2017June 9, 2017June 20, 2017June 22, 2017
June 9, 2017June 16, 2017June 27, 2017June 29, 2017
June 16, 2017June 23, 2017July 5, 2017July 7, 2017
June 23, 2017June 30, 2017July 11, 2017July 13, 2017
June 30, 2017July 7, 2017July 18, 2017July 20, 2017
July 7, 2017July 14, 2017July 25, 2017July 27, 2017
July 14, 2017July 21, 2017August 1, 2017August 3, 2017
July 21, 2017July 28, 2017August 8, 2017August 10, 2017
July 28, 2017August 4, 2017August 15, 2017August 17, 2017
August 4, 2017August 11, 2017August 22, 2017August 24, 2017
August 11, 2017August 18, 2017August 29, 2017August 31, 2017
August 18, 2017August 25, 2017September 5, 2017September 7, 2017
August 25, 2017September 1, 2017September 12, 2017September 14, 2017
September 1, 2017September 8, 2017September 19, 2017September 21, 2017
September 8, 2017September 15, 2017September 26, 2017September 28, 2017
September 15, 2017September 22, 2017October 3, 2017October 5, 2017
September 22, 2017September 29, 2017October 10, 2017October 12, 2017
September 29, 2017October 6, 2017October 17, 2017October 19, 2017
October 6, 2017October 13, 2017October 24, 2017October 26, 2017
October 13, 2017October 20, 2017October 31, 2017November 2, 2017
October 20, 2017October 27, 2017November 7, 2017November 9, 2017
October 27, 2017November 3, 2017November 14, 2017November 16, 2017
November 3, 2017November 10, 2017November 21, 2017November 23, 2017
November 10, 2017November 17, 2017November 28, 2017November 30, 2017
November 17, 2017November 24, 2017December 5, 2017December 7, 2017
November 24, 2017December 1, 2017December 12, 2017December 14, 2017
December 1, 2017December 8, 2017December 19, 2017December 21, 2017
December 8, 2017December 15, 2017December 26, 2017December 28, 2017
December 15, 2017December 22, 2017January 2, 2018January 4, 2018
December 22, 2017December 29, 2017January 9, 2018January 11, 2018
December 29, 2017January 5, 2018January 16, 2018January 18, 2018

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