Tax filing season to start Jan. 23

The 2017 tax-filing season will start Jan. 23, the IRS announced Friday.

The deadline to file tax returns will be Tuesday, April 18, as opposed to the traditional April 15 date. This is because April 15 falls on a Saturday and April 17 is when Washington, D.C., will observe Emancipation Day.

{mosads}The IRS said it expects that more than 153 million tax returns will be filed in 2017, and that more than 80 percent of tax returns will be prepared using electronic tax preparation software.

The agency plans to implement new security features for the 2017 filing season in an effort to prevent identity theft and tax-refund fraud.

Because of legislation Congress passed last year, the IRS will not be able to release refunds for people claiming the earned income tax credit and the refundable child tax credit until Feb. 15. The new requirement is designed to give the IRS more time to prevent and catch fraud, the agency said.

People who are claiming the credits, which benefit low-income families, may not end up receiving their refunds until the week of Feb. 27 because it will take several days for the refunds to be processed through financial institutions, the IRS said.

Despite the new requirement, the IRS said it expects to be able to issue more than 90 percent of refunds within 21 days.

“People should make sure they have their year-end tax statements in hand, and we encourage people to file as they normally would, including those claiming the credits affected by the refund delay,” IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said in a news release. “Even with these significant changes, IRS employees and the entire tax community will be working hard to make this a smooth filing season for taxpayers.”