Why are people getting accepted returns when the IRS doesn't start accepting until the 26th?
I'm seeing posts on social that the IRS has already accepted their returns. I thought the IRS wasn't going to start accepting tax returns until like January 26th this year. Anyone know how this all works? Do they get early refunds? Just curious. I'm feeling kind of rushed to get all my tax documents so I can file but is there even any benefit to file early?
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The IRS does a test to insure the system is running properly.
They do a random upload from tax preparers to make sure everything works before they go "live".
No need to hurry. I believe they will stat by January 26, 2026.
Also see
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Hi free_tax_kim, the 2026 filing season (when 2025 tax returns are filed) doesn't officially start until January 26th (see the IRS news release). However, JLFTUFreeForum is right. The IRS usually does an early test of their system each year to make sure they're ready to start accepting everyone's tax returns when the time comes. This is why you may hear some people saying their tax return has already been accepted by the IRS. Regardless of whether a tax return gets accepted early or not, the IRS says they won't start processing any 2025 tax returns until January 26th.
All tax fling software is bound by the same guidelines coming from the IRS. No software can guarantee or advertise that they will get you the fastest refunds. Even if your tax return is accepted, the IRS may not process or issue refunds due to the EITC, or identity verification, or tax withholding verification, or any other problems that the IRS want to take a closer look.
As Oren mentioned, the IRS is required by law to delay refunds associated with tax returns that have claimed the earned income tax credit or additional child tax credit.
As far as the pros and cons of filing early go, it's generally a good idea to at least wait until you have received all of your tax documents. Some taxpayers file before all of their forms have arrived and they end up having to amend their returns.
One benefit to not waiting too long to file is that it can help protect against identity theft. Early filing gives fraudsters less time to potentially file a fraudulent return using your information. It also gives you more time to find and correct errors (such as an over contribution to a retirement account) before the filing deadline. Filing earlier may help you avoid the stress of filing too close to the deadline and worrying about not getting your filing done on time.
You'll need to look at the factors affecting your situation and decide when is the best time to file.
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Mine was accepted January 15th as well, I was told that it was due to possible discrepancies in my returns, which has never happened before. A different website told me that it was because I was in early filer and they red flag early filers 🤷
Whatever the reason is I'm getting fed up with H&R Block! I have literally been filing the same way for over 25 years and they always have some excuse to raise their prices on me!
Another thing that doesn't make any sense, the IRS knows exactly who we are and how we have been filing in the past so even with EITC, why in the **** would they have to delay those people when it has been the same for literally two decades 😡
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@oren it sounds like it's time for you to switch to FreeTaxUSA- you're already here on their community 😁 + FreeTaxUSA is much cheaper for a better experience
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H&R Block used to value their customers by giving us discount coupons sometimes for as much as $50 off, now they keep shoving insurance options down our throats saying that we should pay another $45 for insurance on our returns just in case we are audited.
Another issue is the Emerald Card they offer to have our taxes deposited on, before they switched to meta it was actually a pretty decent financial tool, but since meta took over I have been hacked twice.
They supposedly secured that problem by taking my name off of the card itself, but now a lot of businesses will not accept it because my name is not on it... Ugh!, I can't win with these people anymore!
Can FreeTaxUSA get my taxes back any quicker than H&R Block or are all tax preparing agencies bound under the same restrictions and guidelines?
Thanks!
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Once you e-file to the IRS and they accept it.
If there are no errors, then it is their hands to send you any refund that you may get.Does not matter who you use.
That is what I have seen.
FYI: I have not had any refunds in years. 😂
Also see this.
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So I received an update from H&R Block, they said my projected date to receive my refund is roughly February 20th because I have EITC.
Again my biggest issue with this whole tax scheme they got going on is people like myself that has filed the same for decades still has to wait even though they can clearly see nothing has changed.
I would accept this a little bit more if I was changing my dependent claims or something like that, just makes Zero sense to me.
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I switched from TurboTax to FreeTaxUSA and FreeTaxUSA said my returns were accepted and I'd be getting a refund 21 days later (Feb 1). Come to find out, the IRS doesn't accept returns before Jan 26th. I submitted everything on Jan 11th. Checking the IRS return status website says mine has only been received, not accepted. Not a great user experience IMO.
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@mjohnson82 I'm like 99% sure that FreeTaxUSA has nothing to do with when you get your refund- they are a tax preparer not the IRS. They prepare your tax forms and then give them to the IRS- after they are submitted it's not like FreeTaxUSA is the one sending out the refunds- it's the government.
Pretty sure i saw that sometimes the IRS accepts a few returns early for testing so maybe that was the case with yours. I think you're going after the wrong person here though.
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@mjohnson82 I just found this article on their homepage about tax refund delays -
About the third paragraph down it says "The IRS opens its e-file season in January. However, they do delay processing returns with refundable tax credits until the middle of February."
It also has bunch of options at the end for contacting the irs about the status of your refund.
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I'm sure you're right. I just don't like getting an email saying "your federal and state returns were ACCEPTED by the IRS" and then checking the IRS website and transcript records to find out they actually haven't even been received. That's misleading, to me.
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Good to know, thank you!
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