This year, however, taxpayers have more options than ever to avoid that expense.   Or . . . maybe not. The most noteworthy new program for free tax-prep, IRS Direct File, came under fire this week from Elon Musk,

The Internal Revenue Service is accepting tax returns for tax season 2025, including through the expanded Direct File program. Why it matters: There's been some confusion on the status of the free online tax-filing program after Elon Musk posted on X Monday that he had "deleted" 18F,

Billionaire Elon Musk posted on his social media site that he had “deleted” 18F, an agency that worked on the IRS’ Direct File program.