IRS Free File Available For Coloradans Who Earned Less Than $72,000

(CBS4) - It's already time to start thinking about your taxes, and the IRS has a tool that should help thousands of Coloradans file for free. IRS Free File is a free tax prep software for those earning $72,000 or less each year.

"This is the 19th year we have worked with name brand tax software providers to give free products to people around the nation," says Karen Connelly from the IRS.

According to the IRS, 83,972 Coloradans used Free File in 2020. That's a 60% increase over 2019, when only 52,443 Coloradans used the product. Connelly says she believes the pandemic played a big role in the large increase of filers using the software.

"[People] can just log on, do their taxes from the privacy of their own home without interacting with anybody. And, of course, many of the softwares also allow people to file state taxes either at a reduced rate or also for free."

The pandemic will change the way many people do their taxes this year. For those who collected unemployment in 2020, a reminder that income is taxable. Those people should keep an eye out in the mail for form 1099-G, which will arrive from the state.

"The good thing about the Free File software is that it's a question and answer format. It just leads you through a variety of scenarios, you plug in your information, answer the questions, it's pretty intuitive."

People who were eligible for a stimulus check, but did not receive it, will also need to include that in their taxes.

"If they didn't receive the first payment or the second payment, or perhaps they did not receive the full amount they believe they're entitled to, they will be filing for the Recovery Rebate Credit," says Connelly.

Filing opens Feb. 12 on the IRS website. You can still use free file now, and the software companies will hold your return and automatically submit it on that date.

To use Free File:

1) Visit IRS.gov/FreeFile
2) Use the 'Free File Online Look Up" to find the right product for you
3) Use the 'Browse All Offers' toll to review each offer
4) Select a product
5) Follow the directions provided to begin filing