By CORA LEWIS, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Tax filing season is underway, and the IRS expects 164 million people will file returns by April 15.

The average refund last year was $3,167. This year, analysts have projected it could be $1,000 higher, thanks to changes in tax law. More than 165 million individual income tax returns were processed last year, with 94% submitted electronically.

People with straightforward returns should not encounter delays, but because of an exodus of IRS workers since the start of the Trump administration, the national taxpayer advocate has cautioned that the 2026 tax filing season is likely to present challenges for those who run into problems filing.

While last year IRS employees were not permitted to accept a buyout offer from the Trump administration until after the taxpayer filing deadline, many of those customer service workers have now left. The IRS started 2025 with about 102,000 employees and finished with roughly 74,000 after a series of firings and layoffs led by the Department of Government Efficiency.

Here’s what to know:

When refunds will go out

If you file electronically, the IRS says it should take 21 days or less to receive your refund. If you choose direct deposit, it should take even less time. If you file a paper return, the refund could take four weeks or more, and if your return requires amendments or corrections, it could take longer.

The IRS cautions that taxpayers not rely on receiving a refund by a certain date, especially when making major purchases or paying bills.

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How to check the status of your refund

Taxpayers can use the online tool Where’s My Refund? to check the status of their refund within 24 hours of e-filing and generally within four weeks of filing a paper return. The “Where’s My Refund?” tool will also provide projected deposit dates for most early EITC/ACTC refund filers by Feb. 21, according to the IRS.

Information related to this tool is updated once daily, overnight. To access the status of your refund, you’ll need:

Your Social Security or individual taxpayer ID number (ITIN)

Taxpayers can also consult the IRS2Go app, or their IRS Individual Online Account, to check their refund status.

How tax refunds work

If you paid more through the year than you owe in tax, due to withholding or other reasons, you should get money back. Even if you didn’t pay excess tax, you may still get a refund if you qualify for a refundable credit, like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or Child Tax Credit. To get your refund, you must file a return, and you have three years to claim a tax refund.

Who qualifies for the Earned Income Tax Credit

To qualify for the EITC, you must have under $11,950 in investment income and earn less than a specific income level from working.

If you’re single with no children, your income level must be $19,104 or below. And if you’re married filing jointly with three or more children, you must make $68,675 or below. To determine if your household qualifies based on your marital status and your number of dependents you can use the online EITC Assistant tool.

Who qualifies for the Child Tax Credit and Additional Child Tax Credit

If you have a child, you are most likely eligible for the Child Tax Credit. The credit is up to $2,200 per qualifying child. To qualify, a child must:

Have a Social Security number
Be under age 17 at the end of 2025
Be your son, daughter, stepchild, eligible foster child, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, half-sister, or a descendant of one of these (for example, a grandchild, niece or nephew)
Not provide more than half of his or her own support for the tax year
Have lived with you for more than half the tax year
Be claimed as a dependent on your tax return
Not file a joint return for the year (or filed the joint return only to claim a refund of taxes withheld or estimated taxes)
Be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or a U.S. resident alien

You qualify for the full amount of the Child Tax Credit for each qualifying child if you meet all eligibility factors and your annual income is not more than $200,000 ($400,000 if filing a joint return).

You qualify for the Additional Child Tax Credit if ($1,700 per qualifying child) if you meet these factors and have little or no federal income tax liability. You must have earned income of at least $2,500 to be eligible for the ACTC.

When the tax credits will become available

The IRS expects most refunds for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Child Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit to be available in bank accounts or on debit cards by March 2 for taxpayers who choose direct deposit. Some taxpayers may receive their refund earlier, depending on their financial institution.

What’s different this year

This year, most taxpayers must provide their routing and account numbers to receive refunds directly deposited into their bank accounts. That’s because the IRS began phasing out paper tax refund checks on Sept. 30 in accordance with an executive order.

The Associated Press receives support from the Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.

By AAMER MADHANI and SUSIE BLANN

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday he has asked Russian President Vladimir Putin not to target the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv for one week as the region experiences frigid temperatures.

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The call for a pause in attacks on Ukraine’s capital comes as Russia has been pounding the country’s critical infrastructure, leaving many around the country without heat in the dead of winter.

“I personally asked President Putin not to fire on Kyiv and the cities and towns for a week during this … extraordinary cold,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.

Trump added that Putin has “agreed to that,” but there was no confirmation of that from Russia.

The Republican U.S. president added that he was pleased that Putin has agreed to the pause. Kyiv is forecast to enter a brutally cold stretch starting Friday that is expected to last into next week.

“A lot of people said, ‘Don’t waste the call. You’re not going to get that.’” Trump said of his request of Putin. “And he did it. And we’re very happy that they did it.”

Meanwhile, a Russian drone attack killed three people in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region overnight, authorities said Thursday, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Moscow is planning another large-scale barrage despite plans for further U.S.-brokered peace talks at the weekend.

The Zaporizhzhia strike caused a major blaze in an apartment building, according to emergency services.

Firefighters also worked through the night to put out fires in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, where two people were injured, officials said.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian intelligence reports indicate Russia is assembling forces for a major aerial attack. Previous large attacks, sometimes involving more than 800 drones as well as cruise and ballistic missiles, have targeted the Ukrainian power grid.

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, emergency services personnel work to extinguish a fire following a Russian attack in Odesa region, Ukraine, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

The ongoing attacks discredit the peace talks, Zelenskyy said. “Every single Russian strike does,” he said late Wednesday.

Russia’s daily bombardment of civilian areas behind the roughly 600-mile front line has continued despite international condemnation and attempts to end the fighting almost four years after Russia launched its devastating all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine is working with SpaceX to address the reported use of its Starlink satellite service by Russian attack drones, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said Thursday on the Telegram messaging app.

He said that his team contacted the American aerospace company run by Elon Musk and “proposed ways to resolve the issue.” Starlink is a global internet network that relies on around 10,000 satellites orbiting Earth.

Fedorov thanked Musk and SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell for their “swift response and the start of work on resolving the situation.”

Musk and SpaceX have sought to steer a delicate course in the war.

Shotwell said a year after the invasion that SpaceX was happy to provide Ukrainians with connectivity “and help them in their fight for freedom.” At the same time, the company sought to restrict Ukraine’s use of Starlink for military purposes, she said.

The Russian drone attacks on Ukraine’s electricity network are denying people heating, light and running water during the coldest winter in years, and the hardship is set to get worse. Severe frost is expected to hit Ukraine in early February, with temperatures in some areas dropping to minus minus 22 Fahrenheit, the State Emergency Service warned.

Negotiations between the two sides are poised to resume on Sunday amid doubts about Moscow’s commitment to a settlement.

The European Union’s top diplomat accused Russia of not taking the talks seriously, calling Thursday in Brussels for more pressure to be exerted on Moscow to press it into making concessions.

“We see them increasing their attacks on Ukraine because they can’t make moves on the battlefield. So, they are attacking civilians,” Kaja Kallas said of Russia at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

She stressed that Europe, which sees its own future security at stake in Ukraine, must be fully involved in talks to end the war. The push for a settlement has been led over the past year by the Trump administration, and European leaders fear their concerns may not be taken into account.

The number of soldiers killed, injured or missing on both sides during the war could reach 2 million by spring, with Russia sustaining the largest number of troop deaths for any major power in any conflict since World War II, according to an international think tank report published Tuesday.

Russia launched over 6,000 drones at Ukraine over the past month alone, according to Ukraine’s Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Russia is constantly improving its drones and its tactics, he said late Wednesday, prompting Ukraine to shift its air defense strategy, though he gave no details of the changes.

Meanwhile, Russia handed to Ukraine around 1,000 bodies of its soldiers killed in the war, Ukrainian authorities said.

At the same time, Russia received the bodies of 38 of its fallen soldiers, Russian lawmaker Shamsail Saraliev, who has been involved in exchanges of fallen soldiers’ bodies between Russia and Ukraine, told the RBC news outlet.

Madhani reported from Washington. Kamila Hrabchuk in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The heads of two pups (can we call them pups if they’re full-grown?) are about to get a lot heavier as they are to be crowned the canine king and queen of the 2026 St. Paul Winter Carnival.

Queen Pumpkin, a 2-year-old toy poodle, and King Bruno, an 11-year-old boxer-shar pei mix, will receive their royal titles at the official Doggie Depot ceremony Sunday at Union Depot in downtown St. Paul. They will be crowned by the 2026 St. Paul Winter Carnival Royal Family. The public is invited to join in the free fun, shop from local pet vendors and even participate in dog yoga (this way you can learn downward dog from a true master).

Out of 2,645 total votes, Pumpkin received 325 votes for queen, and Bruno had 271 votes for king.

According to Doggie Depot, Queen Pumpkin is a “rescue ambassador who brings joy to kids and seniors alike.” King Bruno is a “former Texas street dog who is learning to embrace the cold of his new home in Minnesota.”

Meet King Bruno

King Bruno (Courtesy of Doggie Depot)

In 2020, in Texas, Rebecca Zerlin would take her 6-year-old, three-legged St. Bernard- Lab mix, Trillie, for walks around town. As the two walked, a street dog mix would follow the two. The dog followed Zerlin and Trillie around for a couple of months.

“One day, he followed us home and kind of never left,” Zerlin said.

Trillie has since passed, and Zerlin moved to St. Paul with Bruno, the friendly street dog, in 2023.

“He’s a really sweet dog,” Zerlin said. “He’s got a wonderful personality. Sometimes he can be a little dense, but I think that’s the boxer in him. He loves affection; he loves attention.”

This year is Zerlin’s first time participating in the St. Paul Winter Carnival. She said coming from Texas, she’s tried to be aware of what’s going on around town, and doing so has helped her meet new friends and find community. When she got word of Doggie Depot, she said she knew Bruno had to compete.

Zerlin said her friends flipped through many photos with her in attempts to find the ones where Bruno looked like “his most handsome and regal self.” She said she did not at all expect him to win.

“I’m very excited,” Zerlin said. “I hope Bruno is. I’ve been telling him about it, and he’ll wag his tail, but I don’t think he fully knows what he’s in for this weekend.”

King Bruno succeeds Goldendoodle Grover, who served as 2025’s king.

Meet Queen Pumpkin

Queen Pumpkin (Courtesy of Doggie Depot)

Queen Pumpkin was adopted in 2023 by Elena Lindemann, who is originally from Ukraine, and has lived in Minnesota since 1992. Lindemann and her 10-year-old daughter, Nola, live in Woodbury with their three toy poodles, Lily, Macy and Pumpkin.

Lindemann has been a dog foster mom for 14 years, and Pumpkin was born from one of the dogs she fostered. Betsy, Pumpkin’s mom, was rescued by Coco’s Heart Dog Rescue from a breeding facility, Lindemann said. The rescue organization didn’t initially know Betsy was pregnant, but Lindemann decided to take her in, along with the four puppies she birthed a couple of years ago.

“One of them was Pumpkin,” Lindemann said. “She was the only girl.”

Lindemann’s daughter, leader of “the foster naming committee of one,” gave all four puppies fall-themed names as they were born in November: Acorn, Spice, Turkey and Pumpkin.

This is Lindemann and her daughters’ second time participating in Winter Carnival festivities, she said. Last year, Nola was welcomed to the Royal Family and crowned Little Miss Woodbury Ambassador. Lindemann said her family enjoys all the events, but most importantly, the people behind them.

Nola Lindemann, 2024 Little Miss Woodbury Ambassador, holds her toy poodle, Pumpkin, who will be crowned Queen during Doggie Depot, the 2026 Winter Carnival royal canine event, at 11 a.m., Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026 at Union Depot in downtown St. Paul. (Courtesy of Elena Lindemann)

“Behind all of the glitz and glamour are people who really want to give back to the community and bring joy,” Lindemann said.

Pumpkin is a very sweet dog, Lindemann said. She has been an “informal ambassador” for Coco’s Heart rescue, as Lindemann has taken her to schools to teach kids about compassion and kindness, as well as nursing homes, she said. Though she’s a very kind dog, Lindemann said she’s also good at disciplining the rambunctious foster puppies that come into their home.

“But yet she’s super, super sweet,” Lindemann said. “Her favorite place in the whole world is your lap, and if the lap is available, she’ll sit there all day.”

While a lap is her favorite place, Pumpkin also has a favorite thing and that’s cheese, according to Lindemann.

“That is something that will wake her up from the deepest sleep,” Lindemann said. “She does love cheese. In fact, we use that word for basically any treats. That is her code to activate.”

Lindemann said she’s excited for people to come and meet Pumpkin for the first time. She said she knows they will find her “little five-pound self” adorable. She said she’s also looking forward to being in community with others, especially in Minnesota, at a time when it’s needed most.

“Mostly, I’m excited to be around dog lovers and rescue-minded people,” Lindemann said. “I find that, personally, the days are very sad and everything else, but there’s that bond that you have in common with rescue people, that you can be on the opposite end of the spectrum politically or otherwise, but this is what unites you, and that warms my heart.”

Queen Pumpkin succeeds canine Kairi, an American Pit Bull who served as 2025’s queen.

Doggie Depot

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2026 St. Paul Winter Carnival Royal Family announced

What: A free public celebration of two of St. Paul’s most beloved dogs. Watch as they receive their crowns, shop around from local pet vendors and pet some of the pooches present.

When: All are invited to meet the two royals following the ceremony at 11 a.m. Those interested in “doga,” AKA dog yoga, must sign up early for spots, which are limited, and attendees will have to arrive at Union Depot at 9 a.m.

Where: The event will take place in the Waiting Room of Union Depot, 214 Fourth St. E., St. Paul; “just follow the dogs,” as the Doggie Depot website says.

For more information on the event, visit uniondepot.org/doggiedepot.

By MIKE STOBBE, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. life expectancy rose to 79 years in 2024 — the highest mark in American history.

It’s the result of not only the dissipation of the COVID-19 pandemic, but also waning death rates from all the nation’s top killers, including heart disease, cancer and drug overdoses.

What’s more, preliminary statistics suggest a continued improvement in 2025.

“It’s pretty much good news all the way around,” said Robert Anderson, of the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which released the 2024 data on Thursday.

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Life expectancy, a fundamental measure of a population’s health, is an estimate of the average number of years a baby born in a given year might expect to live, given death rates at that time.

For decades, U.S. life expectancy rose at least a little bit almost every year, thanks to medical advances and public health measures. It peaked in 2014, just shy of 79 years.

It was relatively flat for several years before plunging as the COVID-19 pandemic killed more than 1.2 million Americans. In 2021, life expectancy fell to just under 76 1/2 years. It has been rebounding since.

The data reflect not only a complete turnaround from the pandemic but also a lasting improvement in the drug overdose epidemic, said Andrew Stokes, a researcher at Boston University.

The bad news is that the U.S. still ranks below dozens of other countries, Stokes noted.

“There’s a lot more to be done,” he said.

In 2024, about 3.07 million U.S. residents died, about 18,000 fewer than the year before. Death rates declined across all racial and ethnic groups, and in both men and women.

Heart disease remained the nation’s leading cause of death, but the death rate due to it dropped by about 3% for the second year in a row. A combination of factors are likely at play, including advances in medical treatments and weight management, said Dr. Sadiya Khan, who treats and studies heart disease at Northwestern University.

Deaths from unintentional injuries — a category that includes drug overdoses — fell the most, dropping more than 14% in 2024. COVID-19, which only a few years ago was the nation’s No. 3 killer, in 2024 dropped out of the top 10.

COVID-19’s fall meant suicide moved into the top 10, even though suicides in 2024 declined. Homicides fell that year, too, this week’s report said.

Deaths statistics for 2025 are not finalized, but preliminary data suggest around 3.05 million deaths have been recorded. That number may grow as more death certificates are rounded up and analyzed, but Anderson said he expects last year will end up at least a slight improvement over 2024.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.