The Internal Revenue Service launched a pilot for a new tax filing service designed to enable eligible taxpayers to file their federal tax returns online.
Taxpayers participating in the Direct File pilot program will need to authenticate their identity using ID.me, an Identity Assurance Level 2 verification service, the IRS said Wednesday.
Direct File pilot will join existing IRS products using ID.me, including Get Transcript Online and Online Account.
IRS said the Direct File pilot is open to taxpayers reporting specific varieties of income, credits and deductions across the states of Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming.
The agency is rolling out the system in stages and is collaborating with the U.S. Digital Service and 18F to further develop the service.
Direct File is free, available in English and Spanish and accessible on a computer, mobile phone or tablet.