Most of what you've read online about IRS problems is wrong, or at least misleading. I'm Darrin Mish. I practice tax law in Tampa and I've been doing this for 32 years. Here's what's actually true.
The IRS just reported the best year in its history: a record $5.6 trillion collected and bigger, faster refunds. Tax Attorney Darrin Mish explains what the report leaves out if you owe, why today’s Form 941 deadline matters, and the fake tax credits the IRS is warning about.
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Transcript
The IRS just announced the best year in its history. A record five point six trillion dollars collected. Record refunds. And if you owe the IRS money, that announcement didn’t say one word about you.
Good morning. It’s Monday, and this is IRS Monday. I’m Tax Attorney Darrin Mish. Every Monday, I take the IRS news, cut out the noise, and tell you what actually matters if you owe the IRS or you think you might. Three things today: the IRS report card for 2026 and what it leaves out, a payroll deadline that lands today, and fake tax credits the IRS says don’t exist.
The IRS report card for 2026
Let’s go. On October 29, 2026, the IRS released its results for fiscal year 2026. The IRS says it collected a record $5.6 trillion in taxes. That’s up almost 5 percent from the year before.
Refunds went up too. Total refunds claimed rose 17 percent. The average refund rose 11 percent. And the IRS says about 90 percent of people who filed electronically got their refund in less than 21 days.
The IRS also says it stopped about $38 billion in identity theft refund fraud. That’s somebody filing a fake return in your name to grab your refund. Thirty-eight billion dollars. That’s a lot of fake returns.
Now look at where people are dealing with the IRS. About 37.6 million people now use the IRS online account. That’s up 34 percent. Payments made through those accounts jumped 57 percent, to more than $133.6 billion. The IRS wants your business online, and it’s getting it.
Now look at what the report leaves out. Nothing about phone wait times. Nothing about collections. Nothing about the people who owe back taxes, or the payment plans, or the notices. It’s a report card that only lists the A’s.
So what does that mean for you? In my experience, a faster IRS doesn’t forget about old balances. It just gets better at tracking them. If you owe, you’re still on the list.
What to do. Open your IRS online account this week. The IRS says it shows your balance and your payments. It shows your payment plan, if you have one. And it shows certain notices and letters. Find out what the IRS thinks you owe before it tells you in a letter. If that number doesn’t match what you think you owe, deal with it now. Not after a levy.
The IRS tells you what it wants you to hear. Subscribe, and I’ll tell you the rest every Monday.
Quick hit: Form 941 is due today
Now the quick hits. Number one, if you have employees, today is the deadline. The third-quarter payroll return, Form 941, is normally due October 31. This year, October 31 fell on a Saturday. So it’s due today, Monday, November 2, 2026. If you made every deposit on time and in full, the IRS gives you until November 10 to file.
Payroll taxes worry me more than any other tax debt. The money you withheld from your employees’ paychecks was never yours. You’re holding it for the government. If it doesn’t get paid, the IRS can go after the people responsible for paying it. Personally. Not just the company. That’s called the trust fund recovery penalty, and it’s the one I’d never let a client ignore.
If your business is in one of the Hurricane Isaias counties in Florida or Alabama we covered a few weeks ago, this return was postponed into February. Check the IRS relief notice for your exact date.
Quick hit: Fake tax credits
Number two, on October 29, 2026, the IRS put out a Halloween warning. Trick or treat. Don’t get tricked by tax credit scammers. The IRS named three.
First, so-called Tribal Tax Credits, or Native American Tax Credits. Promoters sell them to cut your tax bill or get you a big refund. The IRS says these credits are fake and don’t exist.
Second, a self-employment tax credit. There’s no single credit by that name. If someone on social media is selling you one, keep scrolling.
Third, the fuel tax credit. The IRS says most taxpayers are not eligible for it. It’s generally for businesses that use fuel off the highway, like on a farm. Not your commute.
The IRS lists some red flags. Someone promises you a bigger refund. Someone offers to sell you a credit for a lot less than it’s worth. Someone tells you to act fast. And my favorite: they want you to sign a nondisclosure agreement before they’ll even explain it.
Remember who’s on the hook. The promoter collects a fee. Your name is on the return. When the IRS takes that credit back, you pay it back, plus interest, and the IRS says false claims can lead to penalties. The promoter is long gone.
This week’s takeaway
Here’s this week’s takeaway. First, the IRS is having a record year, and it’s moving everything online. Log in and see your account the way the IRS sees it. Second, if you have employees, file and pay your payroll taxes. That’s the tax debt that follows you home.
If what you find in that account scares you, that’s what we’re here for. Go to getirshelp.com or call my office at 813-229-7100. If you want IRS Monday in your inbox every week, sign up at getirshelp.com/irs-monday.
If you owe the IRS and you don’t know where to start, watch this one next.
I’ll see you next Monday, and thanks for watching.