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Our latest report provides the results of the Direct File Pilot between February 1, 2024, and April 20, 2024.
Direct File is a free federal tax preparation tool that was piloted by the IRS in the 2024 tax filing season. Once a taxpayer submits their federal tax return in Direct File, it is transmitted and processed like all other electronically filed returns received by the IRS.
What did we find?
- The IRS reported $24.6M in costs to develop and run the pilot. However, not all costs were included. For example, the IRS didn't include an estimated $7.3M incurred by the Office of Management and Budget for employees who helped develop and pilot Direct File.
- During the pilot, more than 423,000 taxpayers created or signed into a Direct File account. Approximately 161,000 of these taxpayers submitted a tax return, and nearly 141,000 had their return accepted.
- Error and identity theft rates for tax returns submitted through Direct File were similar to or lower than other tax software providers.
- During the 2024 tax filing season, 12 states participated in the pilot. An additional 13 states committed to participate during the 2025 tax filing season. State participation was limited by several factors. For example, some states were unable to secure funding to update their systems to integrate with Direct File. Taxpayers may be less likely to use Direct File if they can't also use it to submit their state tax return.
25 States Participating in Direct File for the 2025 Filing Season
For more of our findings:
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