The IRS collected more than $5.55 trillion in federal taxes in fiscal year 2026, up about 4.5 percent from $5.31 trillion last year.
Taxes collected from individual taxpayers drove the annual jump in overall collections for fiscal year 2026, totaling more than $4.96 trillion, up 5.9 percent from 2025, the IRS said in a financial report unveiled Thursday.
Corporate tax collections fell 8.9 percent, while excise tax receipts dipped 1.4 percent. Other tax collections jumped 18.7 percent but posted the lowest total among the categories, at around $55.97 billion.
“The IRS delivered larger refunds to more taxpayers, processed returns and issued refunds timely,” the report said.
The average refund issued to individual taxpayers was $3,439 for 2026, up by more than 8 percent from $3,173 in 2025.
The IRS paid more than $670.1 billion in tax refunds and outlays, up by more than $31 billion. Much of the increase came from a more than $27 billion jump in corporate tax refunds. Individual tax refunds rose by roughly $5.87 billion.
Total taxes collected through enforcement were around $96.8 billion in fiscal year 2026, up from $93.8 billion in the previous fiscal.
The IRS used machine learning models to analyze large volumes of tax returns and compliance data to detect patterns of potential fraud and noncompliance, the agency said.
The models used in these tasks aided the IRS in focusing on cases with the highest noncompliance risk, while minimizing unnecessary burdens for taxpayers who are compliant with regulations.
The IRS investigated “significant tax fraud, financial crimes, and schemes” involving taxpayer-funded programs in fiscal year 2026, the report said.
A partnership with the Department of Justice uncovered more than $490 million in alleged tax fraud through an enforcement operation. The agency also investigated a $170 million COVID-19 pandemic-related tax credit fraud scheme.
The Government Accountability Office concluded that the IRS presented its financial statements fairly and in line with applicable reporting rules. The IRS said this was the 27th straight year the tax agency received such approval, in a Nov. 12 statement.
“Strong financial management is central to public trust,” IRS CEO Frank J. Bisignano said in the statement.
Customer Service
The National Association of Tax Professionals previously criticized IRS customer service, highlighting concerns about how it handled certain customer calls during the 2026 filing season.
The IRS phone line that handles installment agreements and balance dues answered only 31 percent of about 3.4 million calls, the association said in a June 30 statement, citing the National Taxpayer Advocate’s mid-year report.
The association added that taxpayers who did get through waited an average of 45 minutes.
The agency answered only about 19 percent of the roughly 2.4 million calls taxpayers made to verify their identity after flagged tax returns, according to the statement.
The IRS said it reduced idle time for its roughly 16,000 customer service representatives by almost 50 percent during the 2026 filing season while keeping average customer wait times below 10 minutes.
The agency hit 88.7 percent accuracy for assistant answers to toll-free or tax-law inquiries in fiscal year 2026, exceeding targets, the report said.
Taxpayers have increasingly used the agency’s digital services this year, using online tools to quickly access the information they need, the IRS said in an Oct. 29 statement.
The agency continues to “transform the IRS into a Digital-First agency that provides the best possible experience for taxpayers, improves collections, and safeguards privacy,” Bisignano said in the statement.
