It’s been a week since we entered the new year. The taxpayers are waiting for the IRS to start the 2025 tax season to file their federal income tax return. Taxpayers generally tend to pay taxes early to receive the tax refund early and get the peace of completing their tax responsibility.
Millions of US citizens will file taxes during the tax season that starts from Jan to mid-April except for a few exceptions. Taxpayers wondering about the 2025 tax season commencement can check the expected dates and other relevant details here.
When IRS Accept Taxes 2025
Taxpayers preparing for the 2025 tax season to file taxes for income made in 2024 are wondering when the agency will start accepting tax returns. Generally, the IRS starts the tax season in January, like in 2024, when the agency starts accepting the tax returns from 29 January 2024.
The IRS has not announced the 2025 tax season commencement date yet, however, many people believe the agency will start accepting tax returns by the end of Jan 2025 as 15 Jan 2025 the IRS has set the deadline for the quarterly estimated tax payments of 2024.
The IRS announces the tax season for the year in Jan, generally a week or two before the season starts. Since the 2025 tax season approaches fast, the agency urges taxpayers to prepare well to file their tax returns and check the credits, deductions, and all that they may qualify for and claim it with their tax returns.
What is the IRS tax deadline for 2025?
Taxpayers wondering about the tax season starting date should also learn about the deadline to ensure they avoid IRS penalties for late filing the taxes and other consequences. As we have mentioned before, the last date to file the 2024 quarterly estimated tax payments is 15 Jan 2025.
The agency has a common deadline to pay the taxes before the tax day, 15 April 2025, however, the tax due date gets extended for the disaster-affected area. This year, the agency has extended the tax deadline for the disaster-affected areas recognized by the FEMA to 01 May 2025. The disaster-affected areas that have suffered due to hurricanes and storms in 2024, areas are – Alaska, Tennessee, West Virginia, New Mexico, Virginia, and others.
Apart from this, taxpayers also get the deadline to file for extended tax returns till 15 October 2025. People who can’t file tax returns before the due date can request an extended tax return and file it before the deadline. Taxpayers can mark the 2025 tax season due dates based on the below table:
| Due Dates | Tax Events |
| 15 Jan 2025 | 2024 Estimated Tax Return last quarter payment |
| 15 April 2025 | Last day to file taxes |
| 01 May 2025 | Tax deadline for disaster-affected area |
| 15 Oct 2025 | Extended Tax Returns Deadline |
What are the 2024 tax year tax rates?
Taxpayers preparing to file for the 2024 tax year should be aware of the tax rates and tax brackets they fall in to understand how much taxes they will have to pay based on their taxable income. The IRS has seven tax rates with income brackets that let you decide which bracket you fall into and at which rate you will be paying taxes.
Taxpayers can check the tax rate based on their filing status (married filing jointly, single, married filing separately, or head of household):
| Rate | Single | Married filing jointly | Married filing separately | Head of household |
| 10% | $0- $11,600 | $0 – $23,300 | $0- $11,600 | $0 – $16,550 |
| 12% | $11601- $47150 | $23, 201 – $94,300 | $11601- $47150 | $16,551 – $63,100 |
| 22% | $47,1516 – $100,525 | $94,301 – $201,050 | $47,1516 – $100,525 | $63,101 – $100,500 |
| 24% | $100,526 – $191,950 | $201, 051 – $383,900 | $100,526 – $191,950 | $100, 501 – $191,950 |
| 32% | $191,951- $243,725 | $383, 901, $487,450 | $191,951- $243,725 | $191,951 – $243,700 |
| 35% | $243,725- $609,350 | $487,451- $731,200 | $243,725- $365,600 | $243,701 – $609,350 |
| 37% | $609,3502 or above | $731, 201 or above | $365,601 or above | $609,351 or above |
How to calculate your IRS payable taxes for the 2025 tax season?
Taxpayers preparing for the 2024 tax return can calculate their taxable income and taxes they have to pay easily through tax form 1040, or the following instructions:
- First, you should identify your filing status for the federal tax return that you will be filing this year.
- Next, you should gather income and other resource details from the W-2 form or 1099 forms. The taxpayers should know they should also include their digital assets in their reported income. You can take the form 1040 and write down your income-related details.
- Next, you should check if you qualify for any credits and if yes, you should mention in it your form. You should also look for any deductions and all that would help you calculate your gross income.
- Once you have your gross income for 2024 deduct the deductions you qualified for to receive the taxable income.
- Once you get the taxable income check the 2024 tax rates to see in which tax bracket you fall to pay taxes. Next, based on the tax rate you can calculate your taxes, for instance, suppose you fall into the 12% tax rate, so you can calculate taxes by first calculating taxes with 10% on your income, then apply the 12% rate, and at the end add the value of both rate to get the amount you have to pay to the agency.
How to file a federal income tax return for 2025?
Taxpayers can file their 2024 tax return through mail check or electronically. The IRS urges taxpayers to go for electronic methods as it is way faster and more convenient for taxpayers and agencies.
Taxpayer can file their tax return electronically through various ways, such as:
- IRS Direct File: The IRS direct file is free to use and currently available in 24 US states, so do check if it is available in your area.
- IRS Free File: The IRS Free File is available to certain taxpayers who meet the conditions to file taxes without paying any charges to use Free File where they can use tax preparation software.
- VITA assistance: The elderly citizen who needs assistance in filing their tax returns can take VITA assistance from the IRS to file their taxes.
The IRS will soon announce the 2025 tax season beginning date, from which they will start accepting the tax returns, hence, taxpayers stay tuned to complete your tax responsibilities timely.