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Heads Up, Delaware: It’s Tax Filing Season!

Dear Friend,

Today marks the official start of tax filing season: the IRS is now accepting and processing 2023 tax returns! The deadline to file your taxes is Monday, April 15, 2024, but starting the filing process early is one of the best ways to ensure that your taxes are filed successfully. 

Here are several free tax filing resources available to help Delawareans:

  • IRS Free File: A free, guided tax preparation program to file your return securely online. Click here to see if you qualify and get started.
  • Free Tax Assistance Organizations: Near you, there is help with tax return preparation for 2024 through Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) groups and Tax Clinics for the Elderly (TCE) Programs. Click here or call 2-1-1, the Delaware Helpline, to find assistance near you.
  • Interactive Tax Assistance Tool: Get answers on all your tax questions with the free Interactive Tax Assistance tool provided by this IRS. Click here to learn more.
  • Get a Head Start: There are plenty more resources to help you plan ahead. Click here to learn more.

One of the best things you can do to ease the tax filing process is to file your taxes online. Filing your taxes online helps ensure that all of your information is submitted accurately, and it’s also a more secure option than filing a paper return. For those receiving a refund, filing online with direct deposit is also the quickest way for the IRS to process your return and get the money owed to you.

It’s also important to make sure you’re aware of tax credits that you may be eligible for. Recently, I visited the First State Community Action Agency in Georgetown to highlight the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), one of our nation’s foremost programs dedicated to lifting families out of poverty. In tax year 2022, more than 20 million eligible workers and families received an average of $2,541 from claiming the EITC – nonetheless, the IRS has found that only 4 out of 5 eligible workers claim this credit on their taxes each year. As you file your taxes this year, be sure to check out the IRS webpage on credits and deductions to see which benefits may apply to you. 

Finally, the resources I fought for in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) have been deployed towards delivering improved customer service for taxpayers all across the country. Since the IRA’s enactment, the average phone wait time for an IRS customer service agent has decreased from 27 minutes down to just four minutes – and taxpayers are now assisted by a live representative more than 87 percent of the time, a five-fold increase from just a few years ago!

That’s what I call a win-win, and it’s great to see the IRS working to serve hardworking folks during tax season and throughout the entire calendar year.

Thank you,

Tom Carper

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