If you've been dreading the task of completing and filing your 2025 income taxes, you're not alone. The IRS says that 20% to 25% of US taxpayers wait until the final two weeks of the tax season to submit their income tax returns, according to TurboTax.
Don't let your procrastination proceed any further -- it's time to gather all the essential tax documentation and information you need to finish your 2025 tax return and submit it to the IRS.
What's the final deadline to complete and submit your 2025 tax return? Read on to find all of the deadlines and scheduling information you need for US federal income taxes in 2026.
When can I file my 2025 tax return?
The IRS started accepting 2025 tax returns on Jan. 26. For those expecting tax refunds, it usually makes sense to file your taxes as early as possible.
You can file your 2025 federal tax return today with CNET's best tax software. If you're expecting money back from the IRS this year, you should expect to receive your tax refund two to three weeks after your return is accepted.
What's the deadline for filing my 2025 tax return with the IRS?
The final date for completing and submitting your 2025 tax return to the IRS is April 15, the traditional deadline for federal income taxes in the US. Tax returns filed after April 15 may be subject to both fines and penalties if you owe the government money.
There are no local or state holidays that interfere with the tax deadline in 2026, so taxpayers in all 50 states and Washington, DC, should be prepared to finish and submit their 2025 tax return or file a tax extension by April 15.
What's the deadline to file for a tax extension in 2026?
If you want to extend your deadline for filing your 2025 tax return by six months, you'll need to file a tax extension by the same deadline -- April 15. To do so, you'll need to complete and submit IRS Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File US Individual Income Tax Return.
Anyone can file a six-month extension for an individual income tax return.
IRSAny US taxpayer can file an extension to push back their federal income tax deadline to Oct. 15, but if you owe the IRS money, you'll need to pay an estimated amount due by April 15. If you pay less than 90% of what you ultimately owe in federal taxes, you could be subject to fines and penalties.
US states with exceptions to the April 15 tax-filing deadline
Eight states -- Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming -- don't levy any income taxes on residents, and Washington taxes only capital gains for high-income taxpayers. Residents in those states generally won't need to file state income taxes.
The majority of the other 41 states and DC have state and local tax filing deadlines that match the federal April 15 deadline, but five of them buck that trend with their own unique dates for filing state taxes.
Even though those states have later state income tax deadlines, federal 2025 tax returns are still due to the IRS by April 15.
Because of natural disasters, two locales in the US have received automatic extensions for filing 2025 federal income tax returns. Taxpayers in the state of Washington who were affected by storms, flooding or mudslides that began on Dec. 9, 2025, have until May 1 to file federal income taxes. And Alaskan taxpayers in Lower Kuskokwim Regional Educational Attendance Area, Lower Yukon Regional Educational Attendance Area and Northwest Arctic Borough who were affected by the Typhoon Halong that started Oct. 8, 2025, also have a May 1 deadline for federal taxes.
US taxpayers who live permanently outside of the country and certain members of the military serving overseas automatically receive a two-month extension. Eligible taxpayers for the two-month tax extension are:
- Expatriates living outside of the US and Puerto Rico whose main business is also outside the country
- People enlisted in military or naval service outside the US and Puerto Rico
For taxes due, the overseas extension follows the same rules as the standard six-month extension. If a taxpayer owes the IRS money, they'll need to pay 90% of what they owe by April 15 or risk fines and penalties.
