[kelnos]

That argument never held water with me.

Anyone who uses TurboTax etc. doesn't actually "do their taxes". They're basically just doing a data entry job, mechanically typing values into boxes from forms as TurboTax prompts them. In many cases people don't even do that, instead opting to direct TurboTax to automatically fetch their data from a payroll provider, bank, brokerage, etc. and do it for them. So for many people it's just 1) enter in financial institution usernames and passwords; 2) click "file my return".

And given that the IRS wouldn't just "send you a bill", but instead send a pre-filled return, people would have every opportunity to read through it and decide if they agree with what the IRS filled in.

There is materially nothing different. The tax prep lobby has just done a fantastic job of convincing people that it "feels better" to fill out your own taxes rather than getting a pre-filled return from the IRS. Which is bonkers, especially since that supposed "feel good" crap wastes billions of dollars every year.

(The US is also pay-as-you-earn, btw. If your employer doesn't withhold enough taxes from your paycheck and you don't make up for it by paying quarterly estimated taxes, you have to pay extra penalties come tax day.)