The IRS is sending out tax refunds: See how the average amount compares so far

(KTLA) – With tax season in full swing, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is giving Americans a look at how much the average taxpayer refund is this year.

So far, this year’s tax season is living up to the IRS warning of underwhelming refunds.

The average refund amount in 2023 is $1,963, a 10.8% decrease from last year’s average of $2,201, the IRS says.

Tax professionals have said that this year’s refunds likely won’t be as much as last year’s since multiple tax credits, including the child tax and earned income tax credits, have expired.

These credits were issued because of the COVID-19 pandemic and were claimed by millions of Americans during last year’s tax season.

What might have been a simple tax season with so many new credits going away, ended up turning chaotic after the IRS asked millions of taxpayers to delay filing as the agency worked to sort through various state-level relief payments.

The IRS issued guidance last week on the special payments and tax credits, finding that, for most people, they weren’t taxable on the federal return.

The IRS also revealed that almost 19 million people had already filed their 2022 tax returns by Feb. 3 – a 13.5% increase over the same period year.

Due to the high number of early filers, the tax agency has already issued over $15 billion in refunds, a 64.6% increase from the previous year.