Some Illinois taxpayers will now have the option to file their federal tax returns for free with the IRS through its burgeoning tax preparation system Direct File.
The federal agency confirmed to the Sun-Times on Friday that the state is now a part of the program, joining 24 other states including Wisconsin. No other state neighboring Illinois is in the program.
Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement it’s “crucial that Illinoisans and their families have the resources needed to file their 2024 federal tax returns,” and Direct File will “no doubt put money typically spent on tax preparation services back into the pockets of hardworking families across Illinois.”
A news release from the governor’s office also said MyTax Illinois will be “seamlessly integrated” with Direct File, offering “eligible taxpayers an efficient way to electronically file both their federal and state income tax returns at no cost.”
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Direct File was piloted in 2024, across 12 states, and has been pitched as the free government alternative to tax prep services like TurboTax, which have been accused of being predatory by courts and the federal government.
Illinois was not part of last year’s pilot program because the IRS provided information about Direct File to states “fairly late in the year,” according to a previous statement by Maura Kownacki, spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Revenue.
According to the IRS, 90% of respondents in a survey of 11,000 users found their experience with Direct File to be “excellent or above average,” citing the system as being efficient and easy to use.
Richard Kaplan, an expert in tax policy and professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, said 60 other countries already have a system like the one launched by the IRS.
“It’s a reasonable proposition that this kind of critical interaction with the government, namely, filing your taxes, should be something the government makes easier, if not make available completely without charge.”
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Kaplan said Illinois joining the Direct File program is “big and significant news.”
Illinois taxpayers will now be able to find a tab for the state on the IRS Direct File website at directfile.irs.gov. The portal is available to all users in eligible states regardless of income level, but it’s not yet geared for highly complex returns.
Not all are fans of the free federal program. In December, a group of Republican lawmakers penned a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, as well as Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, asking for Direct File to be eliminated. The letter claimed it to be unnecessarily costly and a “conflict of interest” for the IRS to help users with tax preparation.
Among the signers was Illinois Rep. Darin LaHood. He said in a statement to the Sun-Times: “The IRS has a long history of unfairly targeting Americans and abusing taxpayer dollars. The Biden-Harris administration’s unauthorized Direct File program is akin to the fox guarding the hen house, and I am deeply concerned that Illinoisans could be susceptible to harmful mistreatment following this announcement.”
He said he looked forward to working with President-elect Trump and his pick for IRS commissioner, Billy Long, to get rid of the program and “minimize the potential for future exploitation by the IRS.” Long is a former Missouri congressman.