The IRS plans to accept business tax returns on Jan. 16, before the official start of tax season, Accounting Today reported.

The notice was emailed to tax professionals on Wednesday, Jan. 10, Accounting Today reported. The business tax returns will be accepted beginning at 9 a.m. EST on Tuesday,  Jan. 16.

The official start date of tax season for individual taxpayers is Monday, Jan. 29, the IRS previously announced.

Accounting Today noted that, because of some legislation changes, the IRS will not accept a number of business forms for tax year 2023 until Jan. 29. Those forms are: 3468, 3800, 7207, 7210, 8835, 8933, and 8936 Schedule A.  If those forms are submitted with a tax return before Jan. 29, the return will be rejected. Once the forms are available, they need to be submitted in XML (Extensible Markup Language) format and not as a binary attachment to claim the tax credits for clean energy.

Tax professionals should monitor the IRS's Modernized e-File (MeF) Status page for updates, advised Accounting Today.