Professionally prepared tax returns are closing the gap with the numbers filed in the 2013 tax season. While the number through February 28 lagged last year's total by 1.4 percent, the gap between 2013 and 2013 has narrowed significantly since the Professionals have filed 30,053,000 returns through the period reported, compared to 30,466,000 a year ago. The most recent report shows sharp growth in the category to the first one issued by the IRS – the period through February 7 – which showed that professionally prepared returns were off by 5.6 percent.
At 58.9 million, the total number of receipts represents a 1.4-percent increase over 2013's comparable period. The 57.4 million returns processed are ahead of a year ago by 10.9 percent.
The number of self-prepared returns continues to drive the overall growth in returns. There were 24.9 million of these filed through February 28, an increase of 7.5 percent. The number and amount of refunds issued also continue to grow, although after the surge of filings following the late opening of tax season, all numbers have moderated their growth as the backlogged has disappeared.
The IRS has issued 48.4 million refunds, up 5.6 percent, for a total of $146.9 billion, a rise of 8.8 percent. The average refund has gone up by 3 percent.