With another deadline looming to finance the government facing lawmakers in Washington, a great many millions of Americans are posing the same question: What happens should the Government Shutdown 2025? Although a large portion of the attention is usually on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is also an essential federal agency that might be impacted.
To U.S. taxpayers, it couldn’t come at a more uncertain time. As we move on to the next filing season with the 2025 tax season behind us and the next taxing season looming, the issue of IRS operations, customer service, and enforcement take center stage. We will take it apart, what you need to know.
Also Read : How the Government Shutdown would Impact Medicare 2025
Also Follow: youtube
The IRS and Some New Changes and Controversy
The IRS has already been hitting the headlines because of a reason that has nothing to do with a shutdown. There has been a high rate of leadership turnovers and the previous Congressman Billy Long who was chosen by Trump as his IRS Commissioner has been fired within a few months. Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent has temporarily replaced him and is now in charge.
Furthermore, the IRS also introduced its Direct File program in 2025, which was entirely free and enabled some taxpayers to file their federal returns with the agency. Though the move was celebrated as a big accessibility step forward, the future of the program is not sure with the current government.
This makes the volatility more prone in the case of a shutdown.
Improvements in IRS Enforcement and Service: What is at Stake
During the recent years, IRS has been trying to restore its trust with the people. The agency became more concerned with under the Biden administration:
- Stamping out tax scams and frauds.
- Reduction of the refund wait time.
- Increasing customer service response rates.
- Squeezing towards a paperless filing system.
The aim was to modernize business and recover efficiency following decades of budget cuts. Nevertheless, as the political priorities change, the leader changes, and the funding struggles begin, these gains can come to a halt.
The Shutdown Showdown of 2025
The deadline to avoid a shutdown was based on the date of September 30, 2025, but the lawmakers did not come to a continuing resolution. Rather, there were a series of partisan battles.
- Democrats advocated in order to preserve Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act premium tax credits.
- Republicans that had been led by Trump wanted a clean extension of funding without such measures.
- The confrontation was also fueled by Trump sharing an AI-generated video of him mocked at Democratic leaders, criticized by his rivals as racist and separatist.
Consequently, agencies, such as the IRS, were ordered to be ready to be halted.
The general impact that Government Shutdowns have on the IRS
During previous shutdowns, the IRS services were reduced to almost the crawling pace. In the record-long 2018-2019 shutdown, approximately 800,000 federal employees were either put on furlough, or were working without pay. For the IRS, this meant:
- Delayed refunds
- No customer services responded to.
- Stopped audits and enforcement.
- Stopped amended return and requests.
That was a frustrating experience to a number of taxpayers who were already in a tight financial situation.
IRS Contingency Plan for 2025-2026
This time things might be a little different. The Treasury Department, on September 29, released an updated FY26 IRS contingency plan, which includes what would occur in the event of a lapsing of funding.
According to the plan:
- The majority of its core operations will be sustained courtesy of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding under Biden.
- The number of IRS employees who will continue working is approximately 74,300 and these will support basic tax functions.
- Services such as filing and processing of taxpayer are likely to be maintained at least temporarily.
But there is still doubt. In case the shutdown is extended, more cutbacks would be necessary as contingency funds would run out.
The Implication of this to American Taxpayers
To ordinary Americans, the effect of the shutdown of the IRS can include:
- Refund Delays: In case the shut down is extended to another tax year, the processing of the refund would slow.
- Customer Service Backlogs: It might take you longer than normal to be connected to the IRS by phone.
- Audit Pauses: That might be good news to some but it equally implies a lower level of regulation against fraud.
- Uncertainty of Direct File: The future of the program is already uncertain and a shutdown only creates more uncertainty.
Why It Matters Beyond Taxes
The IRS is not all about filing returns. It is also the agency that allocates a lot of credits and benefits – child tax credits or stimulus payments connected with the pandemic. Any slackening down in the operations of the IRS has a direct impact on millions of households.
Doreen Greenwald, president of the National Treasury Employees Union has said that a government shutdown is no DC drama. She emphasized the fact that shutdowns are devastating to real individuals, both those federal workers who are deprived of paychecks and citizens who rely on government services being available on time.
Frequently Asked Questions on the IRS and Government shutdowns
- Will the IRS cease operations in a shut down? Not entirely. With the help of the IRA funding, the majority of operations will not be stopped, and some services may be slowed down.
- Will my tax refund be delayed? Perhaps, particularly in the case the shutdown goes into tax season. Reduced staffing may be a slowing factor in processing.
- Is it possible to call the IRS in the case of shutdown? Yes, however it means longer wait time and fewer agents to answer.
- What would become of audits in case of a shutdown? The majority of audit and enforcement activities are normally suspended.
- Is there IRS Direct File which is safe? It even worked in the 2025 season, but it remains unclear whether it has a future with the current officials.
- What is the number of the IRS employees who continue to work during a shut down? According to the latest contingency plan, some 74,000 employees are left in the job.
Final Thoughts
A government shutdown does not put America out of business but it makes the taxpayer, federal employee, and those who depend on prompt services to have a headache. Although the IRS has backup funds to keep most operations running, any long-term gridlock in Washington may still reduce the speed at which it issues refunds, area customer service, and stifle improvements.
In the meantime the IRS can look forward to continuing its operations–at least at partial velocity. The more important question is whether political leaders would be able to put differences aside long enough to make sure that taxpayers are not forced to pay the price of dysfunction.
Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025Government Shutdown 2025
