A group of senators are asking the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate whether IRS Free File is effectively and securely serving taxpayers who are eligible for free filing services.
Free File is the IRS’s long-running public-private tax-filing program that allows U.S. taxpayers earning $89,000 or less annually to prepare and electronically file federal tax returns at no cost. Those returns are filed through eight participating commercial tax-preparation companies.
In a letter sent to GAO, Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Angus King, I-Maine, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., cited concerns over reports that Free File partners misled taxpayers into paying for filing services that should be free and that they improperly shared taxpayer data.
Until November, taxpayers had the option to file their taxes under Direct File, a Biden-era initiative that enabled free, online tax filing solely operated by the federal government. Direct File was created following a GAO report in 2022 that recommended the federal government create new ways for low- and middle-income taxpayers to file for free.
In April 2024, the IRS said that in the first 12 states Direct File was piloted in, users saved $5.6 million in tax preparation fees and that “usage was robust.” In October 2024, the IRS announced that Direct File would be available in 12 additional states for the 2025 tax season, making the free e-filing service available in a total of 24 states.
However, President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill signed into law in July 2025 directed the IRS to report on how it could replace Direct File. The program was officially suspended last fall, after Republicans and the Trump administration cited low usage and high costs during the service’s pilot.
Following the suspension of Direct File, Republicans said the IRS was working to create IRS-affiliated free tax preparation programs and to enhance Free File.
In their letter to GAO, the trio of senators asked the federal watchdog to follow up on its initial report that spurred the creation of Direct File.
“In their justification for killing the program, the Trump Administration stated that the Free File program, which is operated by for-profit tax preparation firms, obviates the need for a program like Direct File,” the senators wrote in their letter.
“… we have serious concerns that Free File cannot efficiently, effectively, and securely serve the taxpayers who are statutorily entitled to free tax filing services,” the senators added.
The lawmakers asked GAO to examine whether Free File adequately protects taxpayers from hidden fees, misleading advertising, weak oversight, data-sharing risks, accessibility barriers, and inaccurate filings. They also asked auditors to probe how often taxpayers abandon returns, are charged for supposedly free services, or struggle to access state filing, mobile, multilingual, and screen-reader compatible options.
A March 2026 report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration found that Direct File cost $45 million less than expected. That was largely because the IRS overestimated the number of taxpayers who would use Direct File, and the number of IRS personnel needed to help them.
King, Warren, and Wyden are three co-sponsors of a bill introduced in February to revive Direct File.