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The Internal Revenue Service is piloting a new program this year that aims to help Americans file their taxes directly to the government for free.

, the service will be open to certain filers in select states at the start so the IRS can test the program with a smaller group of users and make tweaks before opening it up to a larger group of taxpayers in the future.

This year's tax season begins today, when the IRS begins accepting and processing tax returns.

 an influx of $80 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden.

 from Republicans and TurboTax maker Intuit, which called it a "solution in search of a problem." But the IRS has maintained that Direct File will make what can be a complex and costly endeavor simpler and free.

The IRS previously partnered with private companies to create another free tax  filing program called 

, but only about 2% of eligible taxpayers use it.

Who is eligible to use the IRS' new tax filing service?

At the outset, only federal and state employees in certain tax situations will be eligible to participate in the Direct File pilot program, CNN 

 to people who lived in these states in 2023: Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming.

The pilot is further limited by a user's tax situation. People who itemize their deductions, earn gig or business income, or claim certain tax credits aren't eligible to participate right now.

The service is available in both English and Spanish.

The IRS said it's starting with a limited number of users to follow software launch best practices and that it expects to gradually open up the program to more people and will provide updates about that process on its website.

Direct File will be available to users on a computer, tablet or smartphone. You don't have to download any software.

The IRS is also offering live chat support — with an option for a follow-up phone call — to people who need help using Direct File.

There's one major caveat to the pilot program: it only helps users prepare federal tax returns.

The IRS said most states without an income tax as well as states that have the ability to develop a state-run tax filing service (or already have one) are participating in the pilot.

Users living in Arizona, California, Massachusetts and New York will be directed to a state-support tax filing tool to prepare their state returns. 

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Direct File will be open only to people with certain tax situations living in certain states at the outset. The free service has been criticized by Republicans and tax preparation companies.

The IRS is piloting new software that could let you file your taxes for free

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