Here's the First Day You Can Submit a Tax Return in 2024

Filing taxes may not exactly be something you're looking forward to. But soon enough, it's a task you need to tackle. And you may want to tackle it on the earlier side if possible.

The first day the IRS will accept a tax return this year is Monday, Jan. 29. And to be clear, this year, you're filing a tax return for 2023.

All told, the IRS is anticipating almost 129 million individual tax returns this season. And many of those will no doubt trickle in closer to the Monday, April 15, filing deadline. But filing your taxes early this year could benefit you for a few key reasons.

1. An early filing means an early refund

The sooner you submit your tax return, the sooner the IRS can begin to process your tax refund. And if you'd like to get your hands on that money so you can do things like pay off your credit cards or manage your bills more easily, then that's reason enough to finish your taxes early.

Of course, getting a refund in the past does not guarantee that you'll be in line for an IRS refund this year. But if your financial situation didn't change much in 2023 compared to 2022 with regard to income, then it may be fair to anticipate some amount of money back.

2. An early filing could save you from fraud

Criminals have been known to file fraudulent tax returns on people's behalf. Why would someone do that? It's simple: So they can steal your refund by directing it to a bank account they control.

The IRS is set up to file tax returns by Social Security numbers. If you submit your tax return early in the season and then a criminal files a fraudulent return a few weeks later using your Social Security number, that second return will get rejected as a duplicate.

Of course, this is something criminals might know, and they may try to get that advantage by filing early themselves. But then, at that point, at least you become aware of the matter early in the filing season so you have time to report and address it.

3. An early filing could give you more time to round up funds you might owe

As mentioned above, tax refunds are not guaranteed. And you may end up in a situation where you owe the IRS money this year. If so, it's good to find out about it earlier in the filing season than later.

Let's say you learn that you owe the IRS $150. That may not be such a big deal if you have the money on hand. But let's say you find that you owe the IRS $1,150. That amount of money may not be so easy to come up with. If you find out that you owe it in late January, you'll have a good number of weeks to take steps to drum it up, like cutting spending or working a side gig, by the April 15 deadline.

You may not be ready to submit your taxes on Jan. 29 this year, and that's OK. But if a late January filing isn't doable, try your best to get your taxes ready as soon as you can.