Tax returns are forms filed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or the state tax collection agency. These forms contain information on the calculation of income tax or other taxes. The standard US individual tax return is form 1040. There are several variations of this form such as the 1040EZ and 1040A with different supplement forms.

Americans who earn more than a specified amount of money are required to file tax returns by law. IRS demands tax returns on the basis of three parameters, which includes filing status, age and income level.

Filing status is based on a person's marital status on the last day of year. This includes single or joint return status. Filing requirements vary according to a taxpayer's filing status. According to the IRS, all those earning a regular income should file a return. However, there are certain rules for the elderly and for children under the age of 14 with an investment income. There are certain income limits for filing the tax return. If a person's gross income is not exceeding that limit then they need not file any tax returns. Employment income, income from self-employment and investment income is all taxable income.

Many Americans file their returns online rather than paying taxes themselves. Many companies offer free or paid services for preparing tax returns. There are many websites that render the services of filing tax returns. These websites display tax tables and tax rate schedules for the current year and also provide downloadable forms and publications. They also provide status reports on tax returns and store records of previous year's tax return to taxpayers.

IRS also has an electronic tax filing process, which has made the tax filing process completely paperless. IRS has implemented two pilot programs to replace handwritten signatures on paper with electronic-enabled numbers. Electronically tax filing enables taxpayers to make direct deposit of taxes to the IRS or using credit card. It also assures that the IRS has received their forms on time and sends them the verification for that.