Average IRS tax refund is up 10.6%, early filing data shows

The average tax refund so far this season is 10.6% higher than it was for nearly the same period in 2025, according to the latest IRS filing data.

The average refund amount for individual filers as of Feb. 27 was $3,742, up from $3,382 about a year ago, the IRS reported Friday. The average is lower than the $3,804 reported last week.

Typically, average payback spikes It’s around mid-February when the data includes payments claiming the earned income tax credit or the refundable portion of the child tax credit, known as the additional child tax credit, or ACTC, according to a Bipartisan Policy Center analysis. After the February peak, the average generally declines gradually through Tax Day.

The latest submission data reflects that roughly 51.5 million individual feedback had been received by April 15, out of approximately 164 million feedback expected.

As the midterm elections approach, Republicans have focused on the size of this season’s tax refunds, with many pointing to changes enacted through President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill.”

One Release in late JanuaryThe White House said average tax refunds could increase by “$1,000 or more,” citing several media reports citing research by investment bank Piper Sandler in early October.

Four of Trump’s new tax cuts — deductions Tip income, overtime, senior citizens and auto loan interest – switch to a new form known as. Table 1-AIt is part of individual tax returns.

As of March 4, about 43% of returns included Schedule 1-A, and refunds on those applications were $775 more than last year’s typical refund, Frank Bisignano, commissioner of the Social Security Administration and CEO of the IRS, told the House Ways and Means Committee this week. hearing.

Trump’s larger deduction limit for state and local taxes, known as SALT, could also increase refunds for eligible filers who itemize tax deductions, experts say.

Some of the smaller changes include a larger standard deduction and a more generous child tax credit for 2025.

But experts say tax refunds or balances due also vary based on employees’ paycheck withholdings or other payments made throughout the year.

“What I encounter is [the changes are] “We’re providing a difference of hundreds of dollars, not thousands of dollars,” Tom O’Saben, director of tax content and government relations for the National Association of Tax Professionals, told CNBC.