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The common tax refund is 10.9% increased thus far this season, in comparison with about the identical level in 2025, based on early submitting knowledge from the IRS.
The 2026 tax season opened Jan. 26, and the common refund quantity was $2,290 as of Feb. 6, up from $2,065 about one yr prior, the IRS reported Friday night time.
As of Feb. 6, the entire quantity refunded was greater than $16.9 billion, up 1.9% in comparison with final yr, based on the IRS launch. That determine displays current-year returns solely.
Earlier on Friday, Treasury Secretary and appearing IRS Commissioner Scott Bessent informed CNBC’s “Squawk Field” that refunds had been up 22%. Nevertheless it was unclear what number of days of returns Bessent’s determine mirrored or what comparability interval he used.
The Treasury Division didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
The IRS launch mentioned “common refund quantities are sturdy,” and the determine will enhance within the Feb. 27 launch as soon as the company begins issuing refunds that embody earned earnings tax credit score or extra youngster tax credit score.
“Early knowledge [for refunds] will be deceiving,” Andrew Lautz, director of tax coverage for the Bipartisan Coverage Heart, a nonprofit assume tank, wrote in a tax season information on Jan. 22.
Usually, filers obtain a refund once they overpay taxes all year long by way of paycheck withholdings or estimated funds. Alternatively, filers owe a stability once they do not pay sufficient.
In recent times, IRS knowledge has mirrored a smaller refund in the course of the starting of the tax season, however these funds have “risen sharply” in mid-February, Lautz wrote.
After the February peak, the common refund has “declined barely” by the April 15 deadline, he wrote.
In 2025, the common refund for particular person filers was $3,052 by Oct. 17, based on the IRS.
Filers may see larger tax refunds
For the 2026 submitting season, the dimensions of tax refunds has been a key political subject with the midterm elections approaching.
The laws added new tax breaks for 2025, and the IRS didn’t regulate paycheck withholdings, which may end in refunds for a lot of staff.
Nevertheless, there might be “a variety of variation between taxpayers,” Garrett Watson, director of coverage evaluation on the Tax Basis, beforehand informed CNBC.
In the end, the dimensions of your refund, or stability due, relies on which new tax breaks apply to your state of affairs and the way a lot you paid all year long, consultants say.
