The 2025 tax season is approaching fast, taxpayers must prepare for smooth tax filing in the upcoming season and fulfill their tax responsibility. The agency strives to make the tax filing experience easy and convenient for taxpayers to boost federal income tax reporting rates.
Most taxpayers spend around $270 on tax preparation and filing their taxes through tax professionals or software as it can be a daunting task for many. To reduce the taxpayers’ spending on filing their tax returns, the agency has various options to file their taxes free.
How to file taxes for free in 2025?
Internal Revenue Services offers many ways for taxpayers to file their taxes for free when they meet certain criteria or they have simple tax returns to be filed. The agency has strived hard to offer taxpayers free tax filing services and make the whole tax filing process simple and easy for them.
Taxpayers can take advantage of the IRS initiative or tax filing services that they can use for free and prepare for the taxes and filing, such as:
- IRS Free File: Qualified taxpayers can use the Free File option and use the tax preparation software for free. IRS has collaborated with many leading tax filing and preparation software companies in the nation to facilitate this service.
- IRS Direct File: The IRS Direct File is a pilot project that was launched recently to allow taxpayers to file their tax returns directly to the agency electronically without paying any penny.
Apart from these, taxpayers have other options available such as Volunteer Income Tax Assistance for people with an adjusted gross income of $60,000 or less or elderly tax counseling that offers free tax preparation for taxpayers aged 60 or above.
What does the IRS Free File option offer?
The IRS Free File options are secure and easy tax filing options that you can use only when you meet certain requirements because the option allows taxpayers to use services or tools of leading tax software companies without spying any subscription fees.
Taxpayers can prepare or file their federal or state income taxes in the following two ways based on their eligibility:
- Guided Tax preparation and filing software: As we have mentioned, the IRS has partnered with such tax software companies and allows taxpayers whose AGI is $79,000 or less to prepare or file their taxes for free on such IRS-partnered software sites.
- Fillable Forms: Taxpayers whose income is greater than $79,000 and who can’t use the guided software can use the Free File Fillable forms to submit their Form 1040 electronically for free.
Tax filing through IRS Free File
Taxpayers who meet the income threshold are required to file their tax return via the IRS Free File option and can file their taxes in the following way:
- First, you should prepare the documents and forms needed for the tax return, such as your Social Security Number, Wages receipt (Form W-2s), Social Security benefits (if any), and others.
- Next, you should go to the IRS e-filing option at https://www.irs.gov/filing/e-file-options
- Select the option of File with an IRS Free file partner and next go for Guided tax software or fillable form option as per your eligibility.
- After you select your Free File option for tax filing, you will be directed to the IRS partner site, explore the options, and select one partner.
- If you have previously used the software and already have the account, you can log into the account and prepare your taxes, otherwise create an account.
- Next, calculate your taxes and file your e-file tax return accordingly.
- When you file the taxes successfully, you will receive a confirmation email from the agency of the IRS accepting your tax return.
Who can file taxes through the IRS Direct File?
As we have mentioned, the IRS direct file option lets taxpayers directly file their taxes electronically to the agency for free, currently, it’s not available in all states as the agency launched it last year as a pilot program. However, with its success and adoption, the agency has expanded the service for the 2025 tax season in more states.
So, taxpayers who live in eligible US states and meet the following requirements can file taxes through Direct File:
- The Direct file income limit for individual filers is $200,000 or less, for married but filing separately is $125,000 or less and for married filing jointly is not above $250,000.
- You live in any of the following eligible US states where Direct file is available:
- Arizona
- Alaska
- Florida
- California
- Connecticut
- Kansas
- Maine
- Idaho
- Massachusetts
- Maryland
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- New York
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Pennsylvania
- Washington State
- Tennessee
- Wyoming
- Wisconsin
- You have certain credits, such as EITC, CTC, Premium tax credits, Child and Dependent Credits, Elderly or Disabled Credits, Other Dependents credits, and Contribution Credits for Retirement Savings.
- You qualify for certain deductions, such as educator expenses, student loan interest, Standard Deduction, and Health Savings accounts.
How to file taxes through the IRS Direct File?
Taxpayers who wish to file their taxes through the IRS Direct file option by directly visiting the IRS Direct File website at https://directfile.irs.gov/. The IRS has made a separate portal for Direct files, which is safe, easy, accurate, and free to use for eligible taxpayers.
The IRS direct file will open for 2025 before the tax season begins, currently, it is preparing for tax season. Taxpayers can use the IRS direct file in the following way:
- First, you should prepare the tax information (credits, deductions, other records) and documents.
- Next, sign in to the IRS Direct File with ID.me login credentials., if you do not have the ID make an account on Direct File to use the option.
- Once you sign in to the Direct file account, you can prepare, calculate, or estimate your taxes on the account.
- You may need to add your prior-year AGi or Social Security number yourself if it is your first time otherwise the system auto-fills this information.
- Next, you can easily electronically file your federal taxes (not state taxes) to the agency.
IRS’s continuous effort to make the tax filing experience smooth for taxpayers is brilliant as now taxpayers have various ways – Free File, Direct File, Tax Counseling for the elderly, and VTA to file their taxes free and reduce their spending in the 2025 tax season.