November 4, 2025
Free to fee? The plot thickens
Direct File won't happen in 2026, IRS tells states
IRS shelves free filing; tax giants cheer, users cry 'rigged'
TLDR: IRS says its free tax filing tool won’t return in 2026, with no future date set. Comments explode: users accuse a corporate fix, plea to keep Free Fillable Forms, point to open-source code on GitHub, and argue AI could make taxes easy — anger mixed with hope for revival.
The IRS told 25 states its free tax filing tool, Direct File, won’t return in 2026 — and comment sections lit up. Users who loved the 2024 pilot (nearly 300k gave it high marks) are fuming, with voidhorse sighing, “Isn’t it great to have a government that serves corporations and not its people!” Commenters blame tax prep lobbyists and point to Trump-era moves creating a “task force” to replace Direct File with private partners. Sen. Elizabeth Warren says the “fight isn’t over,” while advocates like Adam Ruben accuse sabotage and say “billionaire friends get favors.” Cue memes of champagne popping at TurboTax HQ and “free-to-fee” jokes as folks mourn the one website that made April less awful.
Not everyone is doomscrolling. cozzyd pleads, “As long as they don’t kill FreeFillableForms,” the free option that’s still kicking. hyperrail drops a plot twist: the Direct File web app code is public domain on GitHub, meaning a revival could happen. jordanb snarks “Money well spent,” linking donations to tax giants, and charcircuit insists AI should make taxes easy already. The overall vibe? Betrayal, big-business drama, and a scrappy hope that open code — and public outrage — might bring free filing back again.
Key Points
- •The IRS told 25 states that Direct File will not be available in the 2026 filing season and no future launch date is set.
- •Direct File launched in 2024, drawing opposition from some Republicans and tax preparation companies.
- •Over 296,500 users used Direct File in 2024 and rated it highly.
- •Users will no longer be able to log into Direct File to access returns; transcripts are available via IRS online accounts.
- •A summer tax and spending law directs the IRS to form a task force to explore public-private partnerships to replace Direct File; the IRS’s Free File program remains underused.