Some H&R Block customers faced serious boutages just ahead of the tax day deadline on Monday night, the tax filing service confirmed via social media.
In a post on the social platform X around 11:15 a.m. EDT Monday, H&R Block acknowledged that an issue was preventing some desktop software users from e-filing their returns. However, the company assured that “online clients” and those working with a professional either virtually or in person were unaffected.
By shortly after 3:45 p.m. EDT, H&R Block announced that the issue had been resolved. “We are happy to report the issue that was affecting a small number of our downloadable desktop software users has been resolved,” the company stated on X.
H&R Block customers experience outages (Credits: CBS News)
According to data from Downdetector, which aggregates self-reports of service disruptions, the outages appeared to commence around 9 p.m. EDT on Sunday and continued to escalate through the night before gradually declining Monday morning.
However, the outages started to rise again around 6 a.m., peaking around noon EDT with nearly 1,700 reported outages before subsiding by 3:20 p.m.
A spokesperson for H&R Block confirmed to The Hill that the issue had been resolved, and clients were notified that they could proceed with e-filing. The spokesperson emphasized that the “vast majority” of the company’s clients use the online edition, which remained operational throughout the day.
Despite the outage, many customers expressed concerns about multiple filing charges. H&R Block sought to reassure them, stating that all “pending charges” would be dropped.
H&R Block outage causes Tax Day headache (Credits: CBS12)
For most Americans, the deadline to file taxes without incurring a late fee is 11:59 p.m. in their local time zone on Monday. Thanks to an $80 billion funding boost, the Internal Revenue Service has enhanced its digital capabilities, including the introduction of a new online tax filing tool to compete with services like H&R Block.
Residents of Maine and Massachusetts have until Wednesday, April 17, to file their taxes due to state holidays. Individuals seeking an extension on the filing deadline can fill out a Form 4868 to extend until Oct. 15, and Americans residing abroad may have further extension options.
