charts & graphs

tax pros handle 53% of e-filings

refunds larger overall, but down for direct deposit.

by beth bellor

less than a month to go in busy season 2021! can i get a hallelujah?

more: tax pros hold their ground | pros tackle 49% of e-filed returns | survey: tax season swings into the red | another tax season from hell? | pros process 44% of tax e-filings | tax professionals report tough slogging | busy season 2021 gets off to weak start
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for the period ending april 9, the latest data available, this was the week in both 2021 and 2020 that individual income tax returns surpassed 100 million. at 100.9 million, the figure was down 3 percent from last year, when filing had gone on for 18 days longer and taxpayers still had three more months to turn things in.


e-filings

electronic filings at 95.6 million were down 1.3 percent. tax professionals handled 50 million, down 1.1 percent, and self-preparers filed 45.6 million, down 1.5 percent.

the pros had more than half of all e-filed returns covered, 52.6 percent.

website visits

visits to irs.gov were up 132.1 percent to 1.1 billion.

refunds

there have been 67.7 million refunds issued, down 12.3 percent, in the total amount of $195.6 billion, down 11.2 percent. the average refund of $2,888 was up 1.2 percent.

direct deposit refunds numbered 63.1 million, down 2.5 percent, in the total amount of $186.3 billion, down 4.1 percent. the average direct deposit refund of $2,951 was down 1.6 percent.

3 responses to “tax pros handle 53% of e-filings”

  1. jon baron

    i believe rick is just referring to how the irs categorizes electronic filing. the irs does it simply by whether a third party signs the return or not. if the return is direct by a taxpayer, and not signed by a third party, it’s a diy return. if it’s signed by a third party, it’s a “pro” return, regardless of what type of “pro”.

    as the ceo of a large tax & accounting software vendor for 21 years, i monitored these statistics very closely as they had an impact on the business i ran, so i needed to know the trends. comparisons year-to-year are always a challenge with changes in tax law, filing requirements and due dates, the fact that the last two years the irs has had to take on a differant role, etc. you had to know those nuances to truly understand what they meant. this year, however, i beleive the ability to compare them at all has been totally broken. why? because of a big push by the diy companies to establish “hybrid” returns. this means that taxpayers can start with a diy software product and then request professional assistance from an enrolled agent or a cpa that is working with the diy company. depending on how much assistance is given, the “pro” may have to sign the return. in that case, the return last year could have been a diy return and this year flip to a “pro-prepared” return. bottom line – don’t rely on the irs pro vs diy breakdown so much anymore, or at all. the “pro” category in the latest report shown above looks great, but i’m no longer sure what that means.

    the category of “hybrid” is very new, and i believe will become quite large, very fast. i’m certain that many readers were contacted by these diy software vendors that are looking for a new revenue stream to become part of their “preparer group”.

    it’s a rapidly changing world everywhere. buckle up!

  2. s dean saul, ea

    i’m surprised that you lump all tax professionals as ‘accountants’. attorneys and enrolled agents who subscribe to your news letter should be offended for the biased reporting.