“This is a critical step forward for this innovative effort that will test the feasibility of providing taxpayers a new option to file their returns for free directly with the I.R.S.,” Danny Werfel, the agency’s commissioner, said in a recent statement.

A spokeswoman for Intuit, Tania Mercado, criticized the direct file project as a “half-baked solution” and a waste of taxpayer money.

In May, the agency submitted a report to Congress that found a majority of taxpayers would be interested in using a direct-file tool, and it began preparing for a pilot test.

Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington State and Wyoming are participating.

“It’s exciting this is happening,” said Gabriel Zucker, associate policy director for tax benefits at Code for America, a nonprofit organization that builds digital tools to help taxpayers get access to government services.

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