agaenls is using outdated technology and has also seen its budget slashed nearly 20% over the past ten years. the best way to avoid refund delays this year, file early. electronically. and ditch the paper forms. as of last month, the agency still had a backlog of millions of unprocessed returns from the year before. for those who made less than $73,000, the irs offers free file. and companies like h & r block and turbo tax offer their own software for e-filing, too. >> e-filing with direct deposit, that's the quickest way to get your tax refund. >> the irs says people who file electronically with direct deposit should not experience issues and should receive their refund within 21 days. >> so it's important to file electronically to make sure that everything is accurate and that it's filed electronically so you can possibly get your refund sooner rather than later.