The North Carolina Department of Revenue has officially opened the 2020 individual income tax filing season and begun accepting and processing individual income tax returns effective Feb. 12. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) also opened federal tax filing season today. The IRS opening date delayed the state opening this year.

Tax returns are due this year on Thursday, April 15. Taxpayers who filed before Feb. 12 will now begin receiving acknowledgements for electronically filed (eFiled) returns.

Taxpayers are encouraged to file their taxes electronically; it is safer, more convenient, and more accurate than traditional paper filing. Free online filing (eFile) options for qualified taxpayers are available through the NCDOR.gov website using NCfreefile. Eligibility requirements for NCfreefile are available at: https://www.ncdor.gov/ncfreefile. Note: taxpayers must start at the agency website, www.ncdor.gov, to file their taxes electronically.

Due to the NCDOR’s enhanced identity theft protection measures, some refunds may take longer than normal, which is 6 weeks for electronically-filed returns and 12 weeks for paper returns. Filing returns early also reduces the risk of tax refund fraud.

Learn more about filing individual income tax returns electronically.