The Internal Revenue Service has set Monday, Jan. 29, 2024, as the official start date of the nation’s latest tax season when the agency will begin accepting and processing 2023 tax returns.

The IRS expects more than 128.7 million individual tax returns to be filed by the April 15 deadline.

Although the IRS will not officially begin accepting and processing tax returns until Jan. 29, people do not need to wait until then to work on their taxes if they’re using software companies or tax professionals. 

For example, most software companies accept electronic submissions and then hold them until the IRS is ready to begin processing later this month. 

IRS Free File is available now at IRS.gov in advance of the filing season opening. The IRS Direct File pilot will be rolled out in phases as final testing is completed and is expected to be widely available in mid-March to eligible taxpayers in the participating states.

Some new and expanded tools and resources include:

• Expanded in-person service that meets taxpayers where they are by reopening Taxpayer Assistance Centers. One such center is located at 380 Fountain Office Court in Fairview Heights. Call 844-545-5640.

• Increased help available on the toll-free line (800-829-1040) and an expanded customer call back feature designed to significantly reduce wait times.

• Enhanced paperless processing that will enable taxpayers to submit all correspondence, non-tax forms, and responses to notices digitally and will be able to e-File 20 additional tax forms. Achieving this milestone will enable up to 125 million paper documents to be submitted digitally per year.

• An enhanced IRS Individual Online Account that includes chat, the option to schedule and cancel future payments, revise payment plans and validate and save bank accounts.

• A new, pilot tax filing service called Direct File that gives eligible taxpayers a new choice to file 2023 federal tax returns online, for free, directly with the IRS. It will be rolled out in phases and is expected to be widely available in mid-March.