IRS Direct File is back again this year with significantly expanded eligibility despite confusion over whether Elon Musk had “deleted” it. (He didn’t.)

Tax season can be stressful from gathering all the required documents to finding a trusted place to file. Here are some options for filing for free.

In early February 2025, claims emerged that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk, had terminated, or planned to terminate, a program — Direct File — run by the IRS that allows (some) citizens to file individual tax returns for free:

The IRS Direct File program, which lets you prepare and file your federal return for free, is still up and running, for now.

Elon Musk wrote on X on Monday that 18F, the digital consulting team who developed the IRS Direct File system, had been deleted.

The Internal Revenue Service launched a pilot program last year that allows people to file their taxes directly with the federal government for free. This project is known as Direct File and has since expanded to 25 states.

Amid the Trump administration’s sweeping and at times chaotic campaign to shrink the size of government and trim head count, a segment of the federal workforce that is critical this time of year is being told they have to stay on the job: the IRS staffers who support the tax-filing process.

This should be a banner year for taxpayers seeking free tax-preparation. But one key IRS program is under fire.