Ready or not, the next tax season is officially almost here.
The IRS has announced the start date for the season and several other key dates.
Read on for everything you need to know to ensure you don’t miss any deadlines — plus the steep interest rate and penalties you could face if you do miss certain deadlines.
When the tax season starts
The tax season officially starts on Monday, Jan. 26. That means the IRS will begin accepting and processing 2025 returns on that date.
Never file until you have received all your income forms and other tax documents, though, as we explain in “Don’t File Your Taxes Until You Have These 8 Things (or the IRS Will Know).”
When Free File and Fillable Forms become available
The IRS Free File program opened for the 2026 tax season on Jan. 9, while IRS Free File Fillable Forms will be available starting on Jan. 26.
Free File lets taxpayers who had an adjusted gross income (AGI) of $89,000 or less for 2025 file their taxes electronically for free. Commercial tax filing software companies provide the software used with the service.
Fillable Forms are an option for all taxpayers, regardless of AGI, so long as they are comfortable entering their tax information into online forms.
Unless you’re a tax whiz, you won’t actually know what your AGI is for 2025 until you file your 2025 return, but you can find your past AGIs on your past returns. For example, on your 2024 return, you will find your AGI for that year on line 11, and that should give you a sense of what your 2025 AGI might be.
When taxes are due
Tax Day falls on Wednesday, April 15. If you want an extension of time to file your return, the deadline to request it also is April 15.
Just remember that although you can get an extension to file your tax return, you must actually pay any taxes due by the April 15 deadline. Otherwise, the IRS will charge you interest and might also hit you with a penalty.
The IRS’ interest rate for individuals is currently 7%. That’s a bit lower than it’s been in recent years — it was 8% throughout 2024 — but still mighty steep.
The penalty for failing to pay your taxes on time is usually 0.5% to 1% of the amount you didn’t pay on time, but it can be as high as 25%.
If you also fail to file your return itself by the applicable deadline, the IRS could hit you with another fine. The penalty for failing to file on time is usually 5% of the amount of taxes not paid on time, but it, too, can be as high as 25%.
When returns are due for extension filers
If you request an extension, you will have until Oct. 15 to file your return.
Your request will be granted automatically if you file IRS Form 4868 on time.
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