An anonymous reader cites a Washington Post report. The Biden administration marked the end of tax season Monday with a modest goal of getting at least 100,000 taxpayers to file through the Internal Revenue Service's new tax software, DirectFile, an alternative to commercial tax preparers. It was announced that. Although the government billed Direct File as a small pilot, it remains one of the most important experiments in tax filing in decades – allowing Americans to file directly with the government online. It's a free platform where you can do it. But Monday's announcement aside, Direct File's success has proven to be highly subjective.
Generally speaking, people who have tried the Direct File software (which, in Q&A format, is very similar to TurboTax and other commercial tax software), rave about it. “Against all odds, the government has developed some really cool technology,” marveled the Atlantic reporter, who found himself “giddy” as he used the website to live chat with friendly IRS officials. He praised it. The Post's Tech Friend columnist Shira Obide called it “visible proof that government websites don't have to stink.” online, people tweeted praise rear filing their taxlike the user who calledthe easiest This is my experience with taxes in my life. ”
But while the users may be a happy group, their numbers weren't large compared to other tax reporting options. And their positive reviews likely won't allay the opposition Direct File has faced from tax software companies and Republicans in Congress. first. These headwinds are likely to continue if the IRS wants to renew for next tax season. The program, made available to the public in the middle of tax season when many low-income filers had already filed for refunds, targeted taxpayers in 12 states with four types of income (wages, interest, Social Security, unemployment). But it grew in popularity as tax season progressed. The Treasury announced that more than half of all Direct File users completed their returns within the last week.