Optimize Your Tax Season Collections Strategy

Optimizing tax season collections opportunities with proactive planning

Did you know the IRS issued over 116 million refunds to individuals in FY 2025, amounting to more than $516 billion?¹ The average 2026 refund was around $3,275, marking an estimated 11.3% increase over 2025.²  Tax season is almost here again, bringing with it one of the largest liquidity events of the year for many consumers. Is your portfolio optimized for this opportunity? Read on to see the steps you can take now to help prepare to implement a robust tax season strategy. 

Increase results as consumer liquidity improves by looking forward now 

The liquidity lift that tax season brings for some consumers has a limited lifespan and the competition for these limited repayment funds is strong. Consider these best practices for proactive portfolio segmentation, continuous contact monitoring, rigorous compliance scrubbing and near real-time monitoring as you set your tax season priorities. 

Identify the top tax refund liquidity targets and set a strategy with score-driven segmentation 

Take advantage of specialized propensity models to identify and segment the accounts with the most likelihood to benefit from tax-driven liquidity improvements. Dynamic propensity scoring can surface macro-economic markers, including Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) eligibility, household dependency ratios to help identify consumer accounts with the greatest probability of tax refund liquidity. Working with alternative data provides multi-faceted perspective and deeper visibility into the accounts with the highest likelihood of repayment and highest capacity to repay. Spending time now proactively segmenting your portfolio and starting with a precise list of targets focuses resources and outreach budgets on the most viable opportunities. 

Enrich data to support efficient contact attempts

Accurate right party contact information plays a critical role in determining tax season outreach results. The narrow late January to April timeline around tax season leaves little room for outdated contact attempts. Performing upfront data hygiene and taking advantage of enriched consumer data that is continually refreshed in real time can save time and improve success rates. 

• Perfect your phones data: Increase phone connectivity by running batch updates for Wireless/Landline flags and reassigned number database (RND) checks.
• Deliver address success: Help ensure tax-season discount offers and outreach reach the correct household by updating mailing records against National Change of Address databases.
• Add the alternative contact advantage: Increase touchpoints by enriching accounts with secondary landlines and email addresses

Prioritize continuous compliance

• Pre-Campaign Batch Scrubs: Clean portfolios against national bankruptcy databases (PACER and court record feeds) prior to launching Q1 dialer or mail streams.
• Accurint Triggers Monitoring: Monitor active workflows for Chapter 7, 11 and 13 filings, discharges or dismissals to automatically halt or resume collection activities in real time.

Deceased and Active-Duty Military (SCRA) Verification

• Conduct automated scrubs against the Social Security Administration Death Master File (DMF) and probate court feeds.
• Verify military active-duty status via the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) database prior to outreach.

Respond to consumer status shifts in real time

Consumer changes impacting risk, contact and recovery often happen before they reach the credit file. A well-informed tax season strategy includes monitoring for identity updates, movement and events that can disrupt outreach, compliance and prioritization. Leveraging tools to surface early, non-credit signals helps you to adjust contact and recovery in real time to enable earlier action, smarter engagement and better outcomes. Areas to monitor include:  

• New Phone/Address Appends: Trigger automatic outreach sequences the moment a debtor updates their contact information with a consumer reporting agency or utility provider.

Take advantage of tax season’s most valuable window

The seasonal lift in consumer liquidity tied to tax refunds is a recovery opportunity where getting optimal results requires a nuanced and strategic approach. Positioning for success starts with thoughtful preparation now to make a proactive plan that leverages tools to increase right party contacts, reduce compliance risk and efficiently manage outreach costs. 

Ready to begin bolstering your strategy for tax season? Connect with our experts.



1. Returns filed, taxes collected and refunds issued | Internal Revenue Service
2. Average Tax Refund in 2026, by Income, Age, and Filing Status | The Motley Fool
3. April 2026 Consumer Litigation Filings: All Major Statutes Up for the First Time in Over a Year | Consumer Financial Services Law Monitor