FEBRUARY 12, 2021 IS THE KICK-OFF DATE FOR FILING 2020 TAX RETURNS

By Lisa Marie Odeja, CPA, EA, MSCTA

The nation’s tax season starts on Friday, February 12, 2021, when IRS will begin accepting and processing 2020 tax year returns.

IRS recommends taxpayers to file electronically with direct deposit as soon as required documentation is available. 

Under the PATH Act, to help the IRS stop fraudulent refunds and claims from being issued, the IRS cannot issue a refund involving the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) before mid-February.

The anticipated refund date is the first week of March for many EITC and ACTC taxpayers if they file electronically with direct deposit and there are no issues with their tax returns. This would be the same experience for taxpayers if the filing season opened in late January. Taxpayers will need to check Where’s My Refund for their personalized refund date.

The IRS anticipates nine out of 10 taxpayers will receive their refund within 21 days of when they file electronically with direct deposit if there are no issues with their tax return. To avoid delays in processing, taxpayers should avoid filing paper returns.