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Experts share top tips to maximize your return

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Just one month remains in the 2025 tax filing season before the April 15 deadline.

As of March 7, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has received fewer returns than in the same period in 2024, but the average refund is 5.7% higher, according to IRS data.

Despite larger checks going out, tax season can be especially stressful. One survey from Intuit Credit Karma and Qualtrics found that nearly a third of workers want to cry just thinking about filing their taxes.

To mitigate some of these worries (and tears), Yahoo Finance asked professional advisers about their top tips and reminders for the 2025 tax season.

As of March 1, the IRS processed 98.8% of the filings it received, refunding $124.8 billion to taxpayers.

“We’re seeing in our practice that more clients are actually getting refunds this year,” Gordon Tax Partner Andrew Gordon told Yahoo Finance.

Some Americans may be expecting larger checks this year due to recent life changes, Gordon said.

“One of the most significant credits or deductions is the child tax credit,” Gordon said. “And so if you had a kid during the year, you can get an additional $2,000 of credit for your taxes, and up to $1,700 of this is refundable or will be paid directly back to you.”

The tax code itself may be another reason for greater refunds.

“We saw that the standard deduction, which many people take instead of itemizing, in fact, increased this year to $14,600,” Gordon said. “And at the same time, the tax brackets themselves, the amount in each bracket increased with inflation. So if your income stayed exactly the same, you’ll still get a larger refund because there’s larger tax brackets.”

Read more: Where’s my refund? How to check your federal tax refund status.

Still, there are reasons why you may not want a fat check from the IRS.

“If you’re getting a large refund, it’s not necessarily a good thing,” Gordon said. “I hear from people all the time, ‘Hey, I got a large refund,’ but the reality is that you’ve given the government an interest-free loan.”

TurboTax expert Lisa Greene-Lewis explained that if aren’t happy with your tax return this year, you can adjust your withholding. It may mean a smaller refund next year but more cash in your pocket every month.

According to a 2024 Bankrate survey, 36% of US adults earn extra income through a side hustle. And with the growth of unreported earnings on peer-to-peer payment platforms like Venmo and PayPal (PYPL), the IRS is looking for its cut.

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2025-03-16 15:00:12

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