With the number of returns efiled by professional preparers still lagging the 2015 tax season, those efiled by D-I-Yers accelerated growth over the prior year. The number of returns filed by the pros through March 11 were down by 2.5 percent, the same as in the tax statistics through March 4. But self-prepared efilings moved up by 4.l percent from the corresponding period ended March 13, 2015.Overall, the Internal Revenue Service reported the number of efiled returns rose slightly to 69,527,000 for the period ended March 11, an increase of .5 percent over the year ago period. Returns efiled by paid preparers dropped to 37,148,000 from 38,089,000. Self-prepared efiled returns rose to 32,379,000 from 32,379,000.
The total number of returns was 74,456,000 through March 11, a mere 1,000 returns higher than the for period ended March 13, 2015.
The percentage increase for self-prepared returns started off 3.9-percent higher with the first statistics released by the IRS and the percentage had declined every week or the prior week, until this latest report. Similarly, professional prepared efilings started the season down 9.1 percent and had narrowed the gap each week until stalling at 2.5 percent the last two weeks.
The number of refunds through March 11 was 59,727,000, down .5 percent from a year earlier while the size of the average refund barely moved. That figure rose to $2,945, a .2-percent increase over the $2,938 for the 2015 period. Direct deposit refunds were off .4 percent at 53,295,000 while the average amount rose by only four dollars to $3,078.
