If they signed a deal with the IRS how come they stil control how the product is displayed? Shouldn’t this free filing app be part of the IRS site, or directly linked from the IRS site (click here to file your taxes...)?
I haven't tried it, and some people tell of getting the runaround when trying to actually use it, but there it is.
That page is literally 1 click from the main irs.gov site. Granted, it's "below the fold", most people will have to scroll down just a little bit. But there it is: IRS Free File.
Go ahead, naysayers, downvote me all you want, but I'll say this: if you can't find that page and investigate if it applies to you, then you deserve to pay to file.
It's a totally different discussion if the links from the IRS site lead to dark patterns and tricks. That's a legitimate topic of discussion.
But not the existence of IRS Free File itself. That's just fine. About the only way it could be easier to find that page would be if it were "above the fold".
I didn't type that directly either. I just typed irs.gov and magically wound up in the right place. :)
But you're right, most people don't grok the WWW enough to go directly to a site. Which, as an engineer, drives me crazy. I don't want magic, I want to understand what's happening. I need to understand what's happening.