Updated October 24, 2026. Quick answer: The IRS has not yet announced the day the 2027 filing season opens. Last season the IRS announced on January 8, 2026 that returns would be accepted starting January 26, 2026, so last season’s announcement came in early January. Until this season’s comes, this page lists last season’s printed dates and what is ready before opening day.
What is not yet announced
The 2027 opening date is not yet published. This page does not estimate it and does not call any date in 2027 the opening day. For the 2026 season the IRS announced the date ahead of the opening, and the table below shows the 2026 announcement and opening dates exactly as the IRS printed them.
Last season’s dates, as printed
Dates for the 2026 season (tax year 2025), from the IRS news releases:
| Item | Date | IRS wording |
|---|---|---|
| Season announcement | Jan. 8, 2026 | “announced Monday, January 26, 2026, as the opening of the nation’s 2026 filing season.” |
| Season opened | Jan. 26, 2026 | “opened the 2026 tax filing season and began accepting and processing federal individual income tax returns for tax year 2025.” |
| Free File Fillable Forms | Jan. 26, 2026 | “starting Jan. 26, regardless of income.” |
| Free File guided software | Jan. 9, 2026 | “will begin accepting individual tax returns starting Friday, Jan. 9 for qualified taxpayers.” |
| Filing and payment deadline | Apr. 15, 2026 | “Taxpayers have until Wednesday, April 15, 2026, to file their 2025 tax returns and pay any tax due.” |
Three numbers the IRS printed alongside those dates:
| Item | IRS wording |
|---|---|
| Free File income test announced last season | “IRS Free File offers eligible taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income of $89,000 or less in 2025” |
| Most refunds issued in fewer than | “fewer than 21 days” |
| Status for a prior-year e-file | “3 days after you e-file a prior-year return” |
What you can do before the season opens
The IRS Refunds page says status is “24 hours after you e-file a current year return”, so the useful work before opening day is the paperwork that a return needs: income statements and the records behind deductions and credits. Dated figures for the return you will file are on the 2027 tax numbers, the 2027 standard deduction and the 2027 child tax credit.
The date that does not wait for the opening
Opening day is about when the IRS starts accepting returns. The deadline is a separate date, covered on the 2027 Form 1040 due date, and an extension of time to file is a form request, covered on Form 4868 for an extension. Estimated payments run on their own calendar: the 2027 estimated tax due dates.
Why a refund is not faster for filing first
The IRS says “some returns require additional review and may take longer.” and, for returns with the Earned Income Credit, “By law, refunds on tax returns that include this credit are held until mid-February to prevent fraud.” So filing on opening day does not move those refunds earlier than mid-February. The wider rules are on the 2027 refund schedule page.
Common mistakes
- Treating a date from a software vendor or a social post as the IRS opening day. Use the IRS news release.
- Filing before every income form has arrived. A return that must be corrected is the kind the IRS says takes longer, and the IRS says “some returns require additional review and may take longer.”
- Confusing the opening day with the deadline. They are different dates, and the deadline is on the due-date page.
Related: the 2027 Form 1040 due date, the 2027 tax numbers, the 2027 standard deduction, and Form 4868 for an extension.
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Answer againSources
- Internal Revenue Service, IRS announces first day of 2026 filing season (IR-2026-02, 8 Jan 2026): www.irs.gov
- Internal Revenue Service, IRS opens 2026 filing season (IR-2026-12, 26 Jan 2026): www.irs.gov
- Internal Revenue Service, Refunds (Where’s my refund?), page last reviewed or updated 16 Oct 2026: www.irs.gov
- Internal Revenue Service, 2026 tax filing season opens with several free filing options available (Tax Tip 2026-08, 29 Jan 2026): www.irs.gov
Read from the IRS and Treasury documents linked above on October 24, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer or the IRS itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.