WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that individual tax refunds during the 2026 tax filing season are up more than 10% over last year, with nearly half of filers claiming new deductions offered in the Republican tax cut law passed last year.
Bessent told Fox and Friends that 25% of the tax returns that the IRS has received so far have claimed a deduction for overtime premium pay earned in 2025, which he called “the home run” of deductions. Filers also are claiming deductions for no tax income from tips, Social Security and auto loan interest for domestic cars.
According to the latest Internal Revenue Service filing data, as of March 20, the average individual refund amount this year was $3,571, up $350 or 10.9% from the same period of 2025.
He said that as a result of the tax changes, which also include a $30,000 increase in deductions for state and local taxes, many taxpayers are reducing their withholding for 2026 earnings, adding: “They’re getting automatic pay increases by changing their withholding.”
Bessent also said that bank filings of “suspicious activity reports” related to potential fraud and money-laundering activities are up 20% this year due to a crackdown on fraud activities involving federal healthcare and social benefits, which he said has reached into the billions of dollars.
He encouraged the public to provide tips on a Treasury whistleblower website, through which tipsters can receive a reward of up to 30% of recovered funds that result from information that they provide. Bessent said that this effort has provided 700 leads for the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network investigators.
(Reporting by David Lawder, Editing by Franklin Paul)
