when does irs start accepting returns 2026

For the 2026 filing season, the IRS has not yet announced an official exact date for when it will start accepting 2025 tax returns, but all available guidance points to mid‑ to late January 2026 as the likely window.

Quick Scoop

• For 2026, several tax planners and CPA firms are projecting that the IRS will open e‑file in the last 10 days of January 2026 , similar to recent years.

• One 2026 refund calendar pegs the “opening week” as the period when the IRS begins accepting returns, with sample dates showing e‑filing between January 20–31, 2026 and refunds hitting in early to mid‑February.

• Tax software companies and tax blogs note that the IRS usually announces the official start date in early January , and that tax season traditionally begins in late January each year.

What is officially known?

• An IRS late‑2025 advisory encourages people to get ready for the 2026 tax season , but it does not yet publish the specific opening day for accepting returns.

• Because there is no formal IRS news release with the exact 2026 start date yet, any single day you see online for 2026 is an estimate based on past patterns , not an official confirmation.

Historical pattern (why “late January”)

• In recent years, the IRS has opened e‑file in the last 7–10 days of January (for example, January 27, 2025).

• Tax deadline guides and refund‑schedule posts for 2026 explicitly state that the IRS “typically starts accepting and processing income tax returns in late January” , and that 2026 is expected to follow the same pattern unless the IRS says otherwise.

Practical takeaway for 2026

• Plan as if the IRS will start accepting 2025 returns sometime in late January 2026 , with many professionals modeling calendars around a late‑January opening week and refunds around early February for early e‑filers.

• To get the exact official date, the safest move is to check the IRS Newsroom or “Get Ready for Filing Season” page in early January 2026 , when the announcement is usually posted.

Bottom line: Right now, the best answer to “when does IRS start accepting returns 2026” is: most likely late January 2026, exact day to be announced by the IRS in early January 2026.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.