An IRS watchdog warns taxpayers may face challenges during next year’s filing season, now that the agency has lost more than a quarter of its employees under the Trump administration.
National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins, in her mid-year report to Congress, said this year’s filing season was “largely successful.” But taxpayers may see delays during the 2026 filing season, given major staffing cuts.
The report finds the IRS has cut its workforce by 26% under the Trump administration, with especially deep cuts to IT and enforcement. The agency, which is currently preparing its IT systems for next year’s filing season, faces a much larger workload if Congress passes a budget reconciliation bill, which includes substantial changes to the tax code.
“The 2025 filing season was one of the most successful filing seasons in recent memory,” Collins said in a statement Wednesday. “But with the IRS workforce reduced by 26% and significant tax law changes on the horizon, there are risks to next year’s filing season. It is critical that the IRS begin to take steps now to prepare.”
