One of the inquiring public’s most frequently asked tax questions is how many people in the entire country file a tax return. A common related question is how many people aren’t obliged to pay any income tax when they file a tax return. We take our answers straight from the IRS, and here they are for 2005. Four Types of Tax Returns Single People Couples All Individual Head of Joint Filing Returns Returns Household Return Separately Total Returns 134,372,678 59,347,974 19,985,059 52,505,729 2,462,804 Paying Returns 90,593,079 41,900,154 6,572,893 40,081,458 2,004,781 Non-paying Returns 43,779,599 17,447,820 13,412,166 12,424,271 458,023 Fraction of Returns Non-paying 32.58% 29.40% 67.11% 23.66% 18.60%
