Direct File, the free, government-provided various to companies like TurboTax, is not going to be accessible for the 2026 tax season. Bloomberg Tax info. This relies on a letter despatched by the Internal Revenue Service to taking part states that claims “no launch date has been set for the long run.”
Direct File, a venture of the Biden administration, was designed to be a straightforward method for eligible taxpayers to file their taxes on-line, with out having to pay for a service like TurboTax or H&R Block to do it on their behalf. The IRS started testing Direct File for the 2024 submitting season and opted to make it a everlasting choice later that yr. Direct File was accessible for the newest 2025 tax season in 25 US states.
Despite the service’s success, the Trump administration seems against providing Direct File in its present kind. He “Big and delightful Bill” Passed in July 2025 contains funding for the IRS to research “the cost of replacing any direct e-filing program administered by the Internal Revenue Service” and “the cost of developing and administering a free direct e-filing tax return system.” Whatever the outcomes of that investigation, by late July, former IRS Commissioner Billy Long had eradicated the digital submitting choice. “You’ve heard of Direct File, that does not exist anymore,” Long stated at a summit of tax professionals. “Big, lovely Billy erased that.”
Engadget has contacted the IRS to verify that Direct File is not going to be supplied in 2026. We will replace this text if we hear again.
While the IRS has but to formally announce that Direct File will probably be gone past Long’s feedback, the software is presently not accessible by the IRS web site. Additionally, the place to steer the Direct File venture inside the IRS is presently vacant below Acting IRS Commissioner Scott Bessent.
