Illinois officials will accept tax returns starting Feb. 12

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Individual income tax returns for Illinois may be submitted starting Feb. 12.

The Illinois Department of Revenue announced that Feb. 12 is also the first day that the Internal Revenue service will begin accepting federal returns.

State officials say an error-free return filed electronically can trigger a direct-deposit refund within four to six weeks. The number of electronic filers increased by nearly 3% last year. Of 6.4 million returns filed, 87% were filed online and 63% qualified for refunds.

'œFiling tax returns electronically and requesting direct deposit is still the fastest way for taxpayers to receive a refund,'ť Revenue Director David Harris said.

Harris encouraged filers to create a 'œ MyTax Illinois 'ť account, particularly because of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. He said with an account, taxpayers may quickly respond to any filing inquiries and speed processing.

The 2020 tax filing deadline is Thursday, April 15. Revenue Department officials said they are working to protect filers from identity theft. They encouraged taxpayers to be vigilant in protecting personal information and to be alert to phone scams and email phishing.