Watchdog Warns IRS May Struggle During The 2026 Tax Filing Season

IRS faces inventory backlog, IT project delays this filing season, watchdog says

The Treasury Department’s watchdog is warning the IRS that its workforce reductions and delays to modernization projects have left the tax agency in a precarious position as filing season begins.  In a memo sent Monday to the IRS commissioner, Diana M. Tengesdal, deputy inspector general for audit, wrote that the agency’s cuts have brought staffing back to October 2021 levels, prior to the Inflation Reduction Act funding infusion aimed at streng…

IRS lowers phone service targets after falling short on filing season hiring goals

The IRS is lowering expectations for how many taxpayer calls it will answer during this year’s filing season, after falling short of several goals to increase frontline staffing. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, in a report publicly released Tuesday, said the IRS is lowering its telephone level of service target from 85% to 70%. The level-of-service metric the IRS has used for more than 20 years only accounts for about a qu…

Tax season trouble: IRS watchdog warns of delays, missed calls

The 2026 tax season is kicking off, and a watchdog warns that taxpayers face new challenges due to Trump's steep cuts

Watchdog Warns IRS May Struggle During The 2026 Tax Filing Season

Staffing losses, backlogs of unprocessed tax returns, and tech delays leave the agency entering filing season under strained conditions, according to TIGTA.

Senate Democrats, TIGTA warn about IRS tax season readiness

A group of Senate Democrats and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration are raising questions about the impact of deep funding cuts at the Internal Revenue Service this tax season.

IRS Watchdog Warns of Delayed Refunds After Shutdown, Staff Drop

Taxpayers should brace for delays in refunds, the IRS watchdog warned, as the agency recovers from staff losses and a long government shutdown last fall.