Data released by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) this week showed that tax returns have increased by a little over $300 on average compared to last year.

Why It Matters

Tax season started on January 27 and ends April 15, marking two weeks now that Americans have been able to file their returns, which the IRS advises can take up to three weeks to process. The IRS has said it expects more than 140 million individual 2024 returns by the deadline.

The IRS also expects Presidents’ Day weekend to be a busy time, telling those who call with questions to look online rather than call in, when they expect the phonelines to be overwhelmed.

What To Know

The IRS releases weekly data providing updates about returns, including total numbers for received and processed returns, average refund amount, and much more, even comparing them to the previous year’s numbers.

A tax return is the form processed by the IRS while a refund is the specific term for the amount received after the return is processed.

According to numbers released on Friday, the IRS has received just over 23.5 million 2024 tax returns and processed virtually all of them (coming up short by just about 74,000). From those returns, the IRS has seen an average refund amount of $2,065 compared to $1,741 at the same time last year.

The IRS differentiates between refund and direct deposit amounts, but even the latter— which has come in at $2,165 compared to $1,831 in 2024—has seen a similar increase year-over-year.

This marks the first increase in the second week of tax returns for a number of years. The last time filers saw an increase in their tax refunds was in 2022 when the average refund increased by about just over $400. Since then, average refunds decreased year-over-year.

The average number of refunds has gone up this year, too. The IRS has issued just over 8 million refunds so far compared to just under 7.5 million at the same time in 2024, while the total number of returns is smaller compared to last year. Fewer Americans have filed digital returns, too—8.7 million this year compared to just over 9.4 million at the same time last year.

What People Are Saying

The IRS on its website offered the following tips to “make tax time easier”:

• Gather all important and necessary tax paperwork and records needed for filing a complete and accurate tax return.
• Report all types of income on the tax return to avoid receiving a notice or a bill from the IRS.
• Avoid paper returns. Filing electronically with direct deposit is the fastest way to get a refund
• Consider IRS free resources to help eligible taxpayers file.
• Choose tax filing options based on personal situation and comfort level with tax preparation
• Use online resources at IRS.gov to quickly get answers to tax questions, check a refund status or pay taxes.

What Happens Next

Americans have until April 15 to file their return, although those living abroad have until June 17 to file. Filers can apply for an extension until October 15.