When it’s cold in northern North America, it’s high season in the warm reaches of the south — especially in the Caribbean — as snowbirds flock to sunnier shores. High season ushers in high prices, but bargain seekers can claim a stretch of sand by considering the value of all-inclusive resorts that bundle meals and activities into the rates. For example, Iberostar Waves Costa Dorada in the Dominican Republic offers a beach, pools and five restaurants (doubles from $170 a night for two). Liberty Travel, an agency based in Montvale, N.J., and known for its expertise in the Caribbean, steers clients to the Grand Palladium Jamaica Resort & Spa for its four beaches and multiple dining options (from $285 for a double). But for those seeking a D.I.Y. getaway, the following destinations allow travelers to stretch their budgets this winter.

Credit card debt is weighing on many Americans. The share of credit card holders making just the minimum monthly payment is at a 12-year high, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported last month. People are spending more on their cards but paying off less, increasing the amount of debt carried month to month and paying more in interest. And more people are late in paying their monthly card bill. “Credit card performance is showing signs of consumer stress,” the bank’s report said. Adding to the stress is the fact that interest rates on credit cards have risen in recent years. The average rate was more than 21 percent at the end of last year, the Federal Reserve said, compared with about 15 percent in 2019. So whether you observe “frugal” February or try a “no spend” challenge, now is a good time to make a plan to chip away at your balances. Right after the new year, “people have so many things on their mind,” said Charlestien Harris, a financial counselor in Clarksdale, Miss., with Southern Bancorp Community Partners. “By February, a person has a chance to settle down. You can begin to focus more and name a goal or two.” Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT If you’re worried about your card debt, there are options that can help you get it under control — such as transferring your balance to a lower-rate credit card, if you qualify. But the first step is to get a clear picture of your spending habits, said Daniel Yerger, a fee-only financial planner in Longmont, Colo. “Before you consolidate or refinance the debt, you have to address the ‘why’ of what’s happening,” Mr. Yerger said. If you are consistently spending beyond your means, moving the debt to a new card isn’t likely to help in the long run. “We can shuffle it around,” he said, “but you want to get ahead of it.” Mr. Yerger suggests looking at 12 months of spending — often, you can download transactions from your online account into a spreadsheet — to sum up where your money is going. Even people with higher incomes can fall into a card overspending trap, he said. Clients may dismiss larger, less frequent expenditures — say, a family trip to Disney — as outliers, even though they may be a big part of their spending. “They’re spending more than they think,” Mr. Yerger said. People tend to have an idea in their head of what they can afford to spend, he said, and seeing the numbers helps to recalibrate. Often people have card debt because of unavoidable medical bills, Ms. Harris said, but even smaller purchases can add up, particularly for those on a tight budget. She gives what she calls her “pop and chips” talk. “Most people have a habit,” she said. So a stop to buy gas for the car can easily get costly, if you also buy snacks and soda and perhaps a lottery ticket. Simply being aware of the pattern, she said, can help people spend less and perhaps put a bit more cash toward paying down debt or building a savings cushion. (She prefers to call it a “spending plan” instead of a budget because it sounds less burdensome.) Ms. Harris suggests that her clients try “Frugal February” — avoiding discretionary spending and impulse purchases, and putting the money toward debt reduction or savings — because it’s a short month, and people often stay home anyway because of cold weather. The steps can be small, she said, like watching a movie on a streaming service you already pay for instead of going out to a theater. Since it’s now tax season, she said, filers expecting a refund can consider using it to pay down debt and set aside cash for unplanned expenses. Another option, popularized on TikTok, is a “no spend” challenge, which involves paying only for necessities for a set period of time, whether a weekend, a week or longer. Mr. Yerger said that approach can be a helpful short-term experiment to gain insight into spending habits. But he cautioned that relying on willpower alone to stop overspending is difficult. “It takes more effort than they might expect.” Psychologically, he said, making a more substantial, one-time change is likely to be more sustainable than having to make the same decision — say, to skip buying a latte — 30 times a month. If you have good credit, looking for a credit card offering a zero percent balance transfer may be an option if you think you can pay off the debt during the promotional period. Some available offers give consumers up to 21 months to pay off the transferred balance with no interest, said Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at the financial website Bankrate. Typically, the offers require a fee of 3 to 5 percent of the balance transferred. (On a $1,000 balance, that adds $30 to $50.) Another option, if you are a homeowner, is to borrow against the equity in your house — the difference between the home’s value and your mortgage. Many Americans have high home equity because housing values have risen. Rates on home equity loans and lines of credit are typically far lower than rates on credit cards because they are secured by your house. That means, however, that if you can’t pay back the debt, you may risk losing your home through foreclosure. So tapping home equity is advisable only if you’re confident you can repay the loan. If you are struggling with repaying card debt, Mr. Rossman suggested talking to a nonprofit credit counseling agency, which can help negotiate much lower rates on card debt in exchange for an agreement to pay it off over a period of several years. Kristen Holt, chief executive of GreenPath Financial Wellness, a nonprofit counseling group based in Farmington Hills, Mich., said the average debt of people enrolling in its debt management plans was about $21,000. GreenPath offers free counseling, typically over the phone, to help clients look at their overall income and spending to create a workable plan, Ms. Holt said. Depending on the borrower’s situation, counselors may suggest taking some big steps — like getting a second job to bring in more income or finding a roommate to help cover the rent. If borrowers enter a formal debt management plan, GreenPath negotiates a lower interest rate with the card companies. Borrowers can get an average 7 percent rate by enrolling in a debt management plan with GreenPath, a rate they would be highly unlikely to achieve by negotiating with creditors on their own, especially if they have maxed out their cards and missed payments. The borrower then makes payments to GreenPath, which pays the card companies and takes a fee, averaging $28 a month. (GreenPath says the drop in the rate is big enough that the borrower still saves money even with the fee.) Here are some questions and answers about credit card debt: How can I find a reputable credit counseling agency? You can search online at the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. What’s the best way to pay down credit card debt? There are two suggested self-help methods. The first, sometimes called the “avalanche” method, saves the most on interest. It involves identifying the card with the highest interest rate and putting as much as you can toward paying off that balance first, while continuing to make minimum payments on your other cards. When the balance is paid off, move on to the card with the next highest balance, and so on. The “snowball” method is similar, but starts with the card with the smallest balance. You pay that off, then move to the next largest balance. The idea is that paying off one account relatively quickly can encourage you to keep going. Will credit card interest rates be capped at 10 percent? During the presidential campaign, President Trump said he supported a temporary 10 percent rate limit on credit cards. Two United States senators, Bernie Sanders, the Vermont independent, and Josh Hawley, Republican of Missouri, have proposed legislation to set such a cap. The measure is opposed by groups representing banks and credit unions, which argue that such a move could limit the availability of credit to consumers who need it.

How much would you pay to go to the Super Bowl? Luxury packages for events like the presidential inauguration, the Olympic Games and the Super Bowl are nothing new, but in recent years, industry professionals have noticed a rise in “ultraluxe” travel — very expensive, private and customizable V.V.I.P. travel and event services. Take the Fairmont’s $350,000 package in Washington for the recent inauguration, a four-night deal that included round-trip flights for four people (and pets) from any location in the United States, a $25,000 Saks Fifth Avenue shopping spree and customized cocktails. The price for sports packages doesn’t have to soar so high, according to Virtuoso, a network of luxury and travel agencies, which said typical pricing for such events range from $10,000 to more than $50,000. “The consensus,” said Misty Belles, Virtuoso’s vice president of global public relations, “is that packages for big events like the Super Bowl and F1 sell out completely.” If you can swing five to six figures for a single experience, here’s some travel and event packages that might appeal. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT The Super Bowl For the Super Bowl on Feb. 9 in New Orleans, the luxury hospitality and ticketing agency On Location sells packages that start at $7,050 per person and include a pregame party, open bar and a ticket to a private concert with Ludacris. A pricier offering, for $62,000, has an “all inclusive” option with seats on the 50-yard line, entry to a V.I.P. club, concierge services and a hotel stay. Roadtrips, a luxury sports travel group, also has Super Bowl packages, from $11,895 to $15,985 per person, which include game tickets, transportation during the weekend and a “V.I.P. Tailgate Party” where N.F.L. players make an appearance and the food is made by a celebrity chef.

Extra nights in cushy hotel suites, free premium air travel and even stays on private islands. Loyalty points and frequent flier miles, when strategically collected, can fund trips well beyond a traveler’s usual expectations and budget. But it isn’t easy to get these deals. Luckily for us, there’s an entire universe of experts who share their savvy in booking award travel, and at the forefront is Brian Kelly, who founded the travel website The Points Guy in 2010. For Mr. Kelly, 41, it started with the childhood challenge of booking travel for his family. At 12, he planned an entire vacation to Grand Cayman for his family of six, booking all of the flights with miles earned by his father. This successful trip laid the groundwork for his career as travel expert, he said. Deals still dictate his travel. In his new book, “How to Win at Travel,” Mr. Kelly shares advice on everything from understanding points and miles to handling flight disruptions and flight anxiety. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT He shared some of that advice with The Times, discussing how to strategize purchases with credit cards (he has 29!), flying with children in business class and the evolving world of award travel. This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. You’ve researched points and miles for decades. What’s still fun about it? I love solving the puzzle. Yes, it’s a little bit difficult, but that’s also the point. If it was so easy for everyone in the world to use, it wouldn’t exist. For those who want to put in a little bit of work, I think there’s still a really high reward. Some examples: I’ve been to the Maldives, Paris and Japan on rewards points. What’s the best travel you ever scored? Airline technology can sometimes mess up in your favor. When US Airways was getting acquired by American back in 2013 or so, I had redeemed 130,000 points for a first-class, round-trip flight to Australia. I was flying during the tech transition, and they ended up refunding all of my points. I flew to Australia for absolutely free. Navigating points and miles requires a lot of legwork; travelers must compare the value of miles and dollars and points on different websites. Is it getting harder to nab good deals? The technology makes it really interesting these days. Before, you had to be an expert and know how to use 10 different airline websites. There are tools now, like seats.aero and Thrifty Traveler, that are a little wonky but not that hard to use. Award redemption is shifting, but with these technologies, it’s easier today to find those sweet spots than before. Certain airlines and partnerships still have really great value. Mostly the foreign programs, like Air Canada’s Aeroplan or Air France. You can fly business class to Japan on Japan Airlines with 60,000 American Airlines miles. You write that the best redemptions for U.S. airlines are generally on international partners, because these aren’t as tethered to dynamic pricing. The foreign airlines are eventually going to catch on. I just think they are several years behind. The prices will rise. Use points now and maximize the sweet spots. What is the No. 1 thing you’d suggest rewards novices do? It’s important for everyone to understand credit. Start with one card — it’s about getting credit cards with the big sign-up bonuses. But really the key is making sure you’re strategic about where you’re charging your dining, groceries and rent. You want to have a credit card portfolio, even if it’s just three cards. Start small, engage in the programs and then expand from there and put together a strategy that’s points and perks like trip disruption coverage. I pay every bill in full every month. When and where was the last time you flew economy? I still fly economy! Preferably for flights under an hour. You advise caution when booking travel with online travel agencies. Why? Some O.T.A.s are better than others, but a lot of their customer service is abysmal. Be careful which ones you choose. I’ve talked to hotel front desk agents: For hotel bookings, your O.T.A.s are generally looked upon as sort of the last priority. So don’t treat yourself poorly on purpose. If the price is the same, book direct. You no longer have elite status on a U.S. carrier. How is this points-only approach working for you? When we’re chasing elite status, we’re often spending more than we have to, or inconveniencing ourselves because we feel we have to keep up on the hamster wheel. I love being a free agent. I will fly the best flight for me and my family to get us there the most comfortably. I pretty much use points for all of my airfare. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT People mistakenly assume all planes are the same, but different planes can be the dramatically much better or worse experiences: legroom, noise, amenities. Cheap is expensive, too, when you account for fees and a bad experience. What’s it like to travel frequently with young children? My older son is 2 years old and has been to 16 countries. My second son was born in December. We’re heading to Thailand for a month in April, flying with points on the Etihad Residence, where you get your own bedroom on the plane. It’ll be my second son’s first international flight. Later this year, we’re going on a cruise in Antarctica. (The cruise itself is not on points, but all of the flights and hotels before and after will be.) I think the younger you start, the better they are about traveling. When they’re young, it’s easy. It’s about preparation; snacks, activities and timing flights to sleep schedules has worked for me. Will your sons be able to fly in the main cabin after experiencing luxury flying? I plan on giving them this character-building experience when I don’t have to be there with them! Is the golden age for rewards over? There are so many credit cards and ways to earn points. It’s constantly evolving. It’s pivoting toward a more stable valuation for miles and points as more and more people get in. This might mean that points and miles will kind of land at a lower overall value. Potentially less sweet spots overall, but more easy to attain value. Because if airlines don’t become more clear about how consumers can get their value, I think they do face regulation from the government, which they obviously want to avoid. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT It’s not just airlines that have these new pricing technologies; consumers do too. There’s all sorts of new tools and tricks. It goes both ways. Let’s end on some rapid-fire questions. Amex Centurion or Chase Sapphire lounge? Sapphire. Oneworld, SkyTeam or Star Alliance? Oneworld. TSA PreCheck, Global Entry or Clear? Global Entry. Favorite city to travel to? Cape Town. Favorite airport? Hamad International Airport in Doha. Best first class? Air France. Best airline loyalty program? Alaska Airlines. Hotel loyalty program? World of Hyatt. Carry on or check? Carry on, when possible. Babies in first and business class? Hell to the yes!

TikTok continues to be on shaky ground in the United States. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court upheld a law passed by Congress last year that required a ban of the Chinese-owned app unless it was sold to a government-approved buyer. Hours before the law took effect, TikTok went dark briefly, then flickered back to life when President Trump, a day before his inauguration, indicated support for the app. He then signed an executive order stalling the ban for 75 days. Whether the app will disappear for good is unclear, but in the meantime, here are four true-crime stories associated with TikTok — the most downloaded app in the United States and the world in 2020, 2021 and 2022 — that captured broader attention. It’s of course no secret that the glossy dance videos that have populated TikTok since its inception, along with much online content, is more fantasy than reality. But that’s little comfort to the revelations uncovered in this 2024 Netflix series. “Dancing for the Devil” primarily spends time with dancers who were managed by the talent company 7M Films and were members of Shekinah Church — both entities founded and led by Pastor Robert Shinn — as well as desperate family members of those still involved with 7M. These families claim that their loved ones are essentially trapped. Shinn created 7M to seemingly help TikTok dancers and aspiring influencers elevate their status. The dancers we hear from claim that 7M is a cult and that Shinn is an abusive cult leader. Accusations include those of fraud, labor violations, extortion, grooming and assault. (Shinn did not participate in the series and denies wrongdoing.) “Dancing for the Devil” falls into a category of true crime that does less looking back and instead documents a situation that continues to unfold. Our film critic commended the three-part series for not rushing the narrative, calling it “daring, instructive, thoughtful and moving.” Last year I wrote about how true-crime storytellers used to have little in the way of real-time first-person footage to rely on. Now, as much of our daily lives are documented, the genre has transformed. And there has never quite been a trail of damning video and audio evidence as there was with this case — told in this 2024 Peacock documentary — about the 2021 murders of Ana Abulaban and Rayburn Barron, who were killed by Ana’s estranged husband, Ali Abulaban. Ali was a TikTok star who, under the username JinnKid, gained prominence and millions of followers with his comedic Skyrim and “Scarface” impressions. He recorded much of his life on his phone, and as his and Ana’s marriage unraveled, he broadcast their fights live, dissolving the perfect image they had projected online. He even recorded audio during the moment of the murders, and neighbors’ doorbell cameras in their luxury San Diego high-rise captured the aftermath. This is a story of domestic violence, jealousy and addiction, and of how a fixation on social-media fame can warp reality beyond repair. Each episode of this Investigation Discovery series, which debuted last year and is streaming on Max and Hulu, examines a different crime connected to the underbelly of social media. Here we learn about Sania Khan, a photographer and Pakistani American influencer whose TikTok following swelled when she started to speak candidly about her split from her husband, Raheel Ahmad, after a tumultuous and abusive marriage. Confessional-type content is everywhere on social media, but for Khan, airing out her private life was particularly brave because of the conservative South Asian and Muslim communities of which she was part — cultures that expect women to maintain the status quo and put their family’s reputation first. While scores of women celebrated her candor and commiserated with her pain in the comments, there was also a brutal backlash from those who thought her posts were shameful, and proceeded to harass, bully and threaten her. When she was just hours from starting a new chapter in her life, the worst happened. This episode is particularly poignant because Khan’s story is largely told through her closest friends, who focus on her effervescent personality and her mission to modernize her culture, push past taboos and reclaim her identity.

If you were planning to use your tax refund to buy the paper version of inflation bonds, you’re out of luck: That option has been eliminated. The Treasury Department ended its tax-time savings bond program as of Jan. 1. The program was the last way to buy the paper version of I bonds, as Series I savings bonds are known. The bonds aim to protect savers against the rising cost of living by paying an interest rate linked to inflation. Some people liked to give paper bonds as gifts, but others used the tax-time program because it let them buy as much as $5,000 in extra I bonds, beyond the allowed annual limit of $10,000 a person in digital bonds. (Couples filing jointly could buy a total of $25,000 in I bonds: $10,000 each, plus up to $5,000 with their refund.) Now, all savings bonds are digital and must be bought online using the department’s TreasuryDirect system. And the extra $5,000 option has ended. “You may continue to purchase up to $10,000 of series I bonds in a calendar year,” the system’s website says. You can still get your tax refund sent to your checking account, say, and then use the money to buy digital I bonds via TreasuryDirect. What’s going away is the ability to fill out a special form with your tax return and have the paper bonds bought with your refund. The change was quietly announced with a website update last year, under the Biden administration. The tax-time savings bond program was begun in 2010 to give tax filers, especially those with low and moderate incomes, a way to buy I bonds with their refunds. But the program “was costly and not frequently used,” the TreasuryDirect site says. On average, 35,000 tax filers bought paper I bonds each year, representing .03 percent of tax filers and less than 10 percent of I bond purchasers. Mailing paper bonds risked fraud, theft, loss and delays, the site says, adding that buying savings bonds online is “simple, safe and affordable.” David Enna, founder of Tipswatch.com, a website that tracks securities that protect against inflation, said the government hadn’t widely publicized its new I bond purchase policy. Some tax filers are likely to be disappointed, he said, because a popular strategy was to overpay taxes during a tax year to generate a tax refund to buy the bonds the next spring. The loss of the option to buy an extra $5,000 in I bonds will probably be unpopular among buyers, he said. The $10,000 annual cap, he said, is “too small,” because it takes years to buy enough bonds to generate significant interest. I bonds, first issued in 1998, grabbed savers’ attention during the pandemic-induced inflation surge. In 2022, the interest rate on I bonds rose to well over 9 percent, far outpacing rates on other safe options for cash. The low-risk bonds pay a rate made up of two parts: a fixed rate, set when the bond is issued and staying the same for its 30-year life, and a variable rate that changes every six months — on May 1 and Nov. 1 — based on the Consumer Price Index. The Treasury Department applies a formula to combine the two parts into an overall rate. Rates on I bonds have fallen to more pedestrian levels as inflation has eased. I bonds bought from Nov. 1, 2024, through April 30 are paying an annualized composite rate of 3.11 percent. That means the bonds aren’t a compelling way right now for parking short-term cash, said Jeremy Keil, a financial planner near Milwaukee who tracks the bonds, because safe alternatives, including high-yield savings accounts and certificates of deposit, are paying 4 percent or higher. But the bonds remain attractive for people seeking a hedge against inflation over the longer term, he said. The current fixed rate on I bonds is 1.2 percent, one of their highest in recent years. Holders will also get a variable rate tied to inflation, he said. (When rates reset in May, it’s likely that the base rate will stay about the same and the variable rate will increase, Mr. Keil said). Here are some questions and answers about I bonds: What else should I know about I bonds? Interest on the bonds is exempt from state and local income taxes. You’ll owe federal tax on the interest earned, but you can wait to pay it until you cash the bond, if you want. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You can’t redeem the bonds until you have held them for at least a year. And if you cash them in before five years, you’ll forfeit the last three months of interest as a penalty. What should I do if I have paper I bonds? You can hold them until you’re ready to cash them in (at a bank, if you can find one that still does it, or by mailing them to the Treasury Department). Or you can convert them to electronic bonds using your online TreasuryDirect account. Can I still buy electronic I bonds directly, using my income tax refund? No. According to the I.R.S. Form 1040 instructions for 2024, “The program allowing for your refund to be deposited into your Treasury Direct account to buy savings bonds, as well as the ability to buy paper bonds with your refund, has been discontinued.” Form 8888, which filers could previously use to direct refunds to buy the bonds, can be used to split a direct deposit refund into two accounts, like a checking or savings account or even an individual retirement account. But it cannot be used to deposit a refund into a TreasuryDirect account, said a Treasury Department spokesman.

Reports that Fitbit’s Ionic smartwatch was overheating began in 2018 and continued into 2020. But according to U.S. officials, the company did not quickly report, as the law requires, that the battery inside the watch was creating an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death to consumers. On Thursday, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that Fitbit had agreed to pay a $12.25 million civil penalty over its delay in reporting that the lithium-ion battery in the watch can overheat, creating a burn hazard. The commission noted that in early 2020, Fitbit had issued a firmware update to reduce the potential for battery overheating, as consumers continued to report suffering burns because of the watch. But Fitbit did not voluntarily recall the Ionic smart watch until March 2, 2022. By then, the commission said, Fitbit had received at least 174 reports globally of the lithium-ion battery’s overheating, leading to 118 reported injuries, including two cases of third-degree burns and four of second-degree burns. “Fitbit should have immediately reported numerous overheating incidents, including second- and third-degree burns,” Commissioner Rich Trumka Jr. said Thursday in a statement. “Instead, Fitbit broke the law by delaying its reporting, leaving consumers exposed to the burn hazard. Many of these injuries could have been prevented.” In a statement on Friday, a Fitbit spokesman said, “Customer safety continues to be our top priority, and we’re pleased to resolve this matter with the C.P.S.C. stemming from the 2022 voluntary recall of Fitbit Ionic.” About one million of the devices, which track activity, heart rate and sleep, were sold in the United States from September 2017 through December 2021, with an additional 693,000 sold globally. Fitbit said that the injury reports represented fewer than 0.01 percent of all Ionic watches sold. The company stopped production of the Ionic in 2020, according to the consumer commission. At the time of the 2022 recall, owners were offered $299 after returning their Ionic watches and received a discount code for select Fitbit devices, according to the consumer commission. As part of the settlement agreement, Fitbit agreed to submit an annual report, including updates on the effectiveness of its revamped compliance policies. Google bought Fitbit for $2.1 billion in early 2021 after agreeing not to use the health and wellness data that Fitbit had created to target ads at internet users. In 2014, Fitbit recalled more than a million of its Force wristbands after customers complained of severe skin irritation. But the company avoided a recall of its Flex wristbands later that year, after similar complaints, by adding a warning about nickel allergies and a sizing guideline to prevent users from wearing the wristbands too tightly.

Tax season opens Monday, and the Internal Revenue Service has announced that it has expanded its free online system for filing 2024 returns directly with the federal government. The Direct File option was initially offered in a dozen states last year to low- and moderate-income taxpayers with simple returns. The trial went well, with most filers giving it high marks. The agency said it would expand the program this year, making it available to millions of taxpayers in 13 more states and adding features to cover more tax situations. Whether Direct File continues beyond this year, however, remains to be seen. The offering has faced opposition from commercial tax-preparation software firms and from Republican members of Congress, who last month urged President-elect Donald J. Trump to end what they called the “unauthorized and wasteful” program. (The I.R.S. was tasked with exploring a free direct-filing option as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the wide-ranging law championed by Democrats and the Biden administration.) Scott Bessent, President Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Treasury Department, which oversees the I.R.S., pledged at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee this month that if he was confirmed, Direct File would operate for this year’s tax season. He said he would then “study” the program. The I.R.S. accepted more than 140,000 Direct File returns last year. Most were from single filers. Their average age was 33, their average income was $44,000 and a quarter had income under federal poverty guidelines, the I.R.S. said. This year, according to the I.R.S. online eligibility tool, single filers with wages of $200,000 or less in 2024 can use Direct File. For those with more than one employer, the cutoff drops to $168,600. Married couples filing jointly are eligible as long as their combined wages don’t exceed $250,000. People who itemize deductions aren’t eligible to use Direct File. Adam Ruben, vice president of campaigns and political strategy at the Economic Security Project, an advocacy group that champions efforts to help low- and moderate-income families, including free tax filing, said he was “optimistic” the program would endure because it’s easy and free. “I think it will sell itself,” he said. “No one loves to do their taxes, but you shouldn’t have to pay to get it done.” On average, Americans spend about 13 hours and $270 to prepare their taxes every year, according to the I.R.S. In last year’s pilot program, which was available for just part of the filing season, Direct File was limited to people with income such as wages reported on W-2 forms, Social Security income, unemployment payments and interest income under $1,500. This year, the system will be available from the first day of filing season and can also be used by people with higher interest income and some types of retirement income. (Gig workers still aren’t eligible.) This year’s version can also handle returns claiming more types of tax credits. In addition to the earned-income tax credit, the child tax credit, and the credit for other dependents, this year the system will cover filers claiming the child and dependent care credit; the premium tax credit for those who get health coverage from the Affordable Care Act marketplace; the credit for the elderly and disabled; and the retirement savings contributions credit, which is also known as the “saver’s credit.” People with deductions for contributing to a health savings account, a type of tax-favored account paired with a high-deductible health insurance plan, can also use the tool. This year, users will have the option of having their Direct File tax form filled in with some information the I.R.S. already has, like their name, address and Social Security number. They’ll also be able to have financial information from their Form W-2 wage statement imported electronically, but that function won’t be available until February, according to an I.R.S. video shared with reporters. “This is a huge step forward and will decrease barriers for many households,” said Courtney O’Reilly, senior program manager for tax benefits at Code for America, a nonprofit group that has worked with six states to create free state filing tools that work with Direct File. Filers can use Direct File on a mobile phone, laptop, tablet or desktop computer. Like commercial tax software, the system asks questions to guide users through their return. Filers can get help using a live chat feature. The Government Accountability Office, which generally praised last year’s pilot in a report in December, said the I.R.S. was behind in training customer service representatives for the program this year. In response, the I.R.S. said that it was “on track.” Taxpayers must create an online I.R.S. account to use Direct File. You’ll need to verify your identity by uploading a driver’s license or other ID and a photograph of yourself. Filers who must also file state tax returns are guided to a state website after completing their federal form. Matthew Chaves, 19, a college sophomore from Durham, N.C., attending school near Boston, just filed his taxes himself for the first time as part of a test phase for Direct File. Previously, he said, he had filed taxes with guidance from his mother, using commercial tax-preparation software, so he was relieved to complete his federal return on his own in about half an hour. He said he also liked that his North Carolina state tax return automatically populated with his federal information. “It was super seamless,” he said. “And also, it’s free!” He’s expecting a refund of $40. Taxpayers with income of $84,000 or less still have the option of using the separate Free File program, a partnership between the I.R.S. and several do-it-yourself tax software firms, to file free electronic returns. The I.R.S. also provides free online forms, without step-by-step guidance, that filers can use, regardless of income, to file federal returns. Some commercial providers also offer free options for filers based on their income, but consumers have sometimes found the terms of the deals confusing. Last year, the Federal Trade Commission found that Intuit, the parent of TurboTax, had engaged in deceptive advertising about its free tax filing product. Intuit has appealed the finding and the case is before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In an email, the company said it “looks forward to defending itself in front of a neutral arbiter and has always been clear, fair and transparent with its customers and is committed to free tax preparation.” The start of filing season comes amid a shake-up of I.R.S. leadership. Daniel Werfel, who oversaw the Direct File pilot as the agency’s commissioner, resigned Monday. (Mr. Werfel was appointed by President Joseph R. Biden and his term was scheduled to run through late 2027. But Mr. Werfel said he would resign on Jan. 20, citing President Trump’s stated plan to nominate a replacement.) Here are some questions and answers about Direct File and the 2025 tax season: What states will offer Direct File this year? In addition to the 12 states that offered the tool as a pilot last year — Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming — eligible taxpayers in 13 more states can use the system: Alaska, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. How do I know if I’m eligible to use Direct File? You must have lived and worked in a participating state for all of 2024, and meet other requirements. To see if you qualify, check online at IRS.gov. When is the tax filing deadline this year? The federal tax filing deadline is April 15. Direct file is scheduled to be available until Oct. 15, the deadline for those who requested an automatic extension to file.

For most of us, the chances of having Martha Stewart visit our garden is vanishingly small. Until now. After years of research, a highly fragrant pink and apricot hybrid tea rose named after the lifestyle doyenne has hit the market. In May 2023 Stewart decided to install a rose garden at her Bedford, New York estate and invited Danielle Dall’Armi Hahn, the owner of Rose Story Farms and author of “The Color of Roses,” to advise her. While Hahn was in New York for the garden build, the two began to discuss an idea over dinner. “I said, ‘Martha, what do you think about having your own rose?’. And she said, ‘Amazing, I would love that’,” explained Hahn. Creating a new rose is a massive undertaking — from inception to market usually takes years. So, while Stewart’s involvement in the project began a few years ago, the rose named after her has been around a decade in the making. The creation of a rose begins by considering “the traits you want” the flower to have, explained Consulting Rosarian (a certified expert in rose care) and independent hybridizer Christopher Huffer, before choosing your parent plants with those traits. Once the parents are crossed through the pollination process, seeds will form in rose hips (the seed pods of roses) with each seed having the potential to become a new rose. Then there are years of testing before a potential new rose can ever be sold commercially. Hahn is no stranger to working with celebrities. She and her father Lorenzo Dall’Armi collaborated with chef and author Julia Child when Child decided to pick the now iconic yellow rose to be her namesake. Stewart, meanwhile, already has a number of plants carrying her name including a begonia, a daffodil and an orchid. But to have a rose named after you is “a really big honor,” said Hahn. “And for people who love roses, it is the highest honor”. Finding the perfect rose to become Martha’s namesake was difficult according to Hahn, who visited various fields and looked at dozens of contenders. When searching for the right rose, there are a number of factors to consider, including color. Stewart has a “very defined color palette,” said Hahn, “but anything in like the medium-pink to peach, to apricot, even a creamy apricot, I think she would have been open to.” But the search ended when they came across a compact hybrid tea in Martha’s preferred color palette at Star Roses and Plants, an American horticultural company involved in plant breeding, distribution and intellectual property. What would become the Martha Stewart rose was first sent to the United States as a test rose called CP 15 8603 in December 2015, one of many sent by European rose breeding company Meilland International for evaluation. “On average, it’s maybe 150 codes (roses) we get from them every year,” Kristen Smith, a rose evaluation manager for Star Roses and Plants, told CNN. But Meilland is just one of the rose breeders the company works with. On average, it looks at close to 700 roses annually, according to Smith. After entering the US, roses are placed in a two-year quarantine period before testing begins. During the testing phase roses are reviewed for certain criteria, including growth and development in different weather conditions, as well as disease resistance. The rose that would become Stewart’s was placed at Star Roses’ testing fields in Pennsylvania and California. In 2021, as it became apparent that CP 15 8603 was special, the Star Roses team decided to patent it. “At that time, we hadn’t necessarily 100% decided to introduce it, but we knew that it was an important variety,” said Susan Bacus Morgan, marketing manager for Star Roses and Plants. “On average, it’s about five varieties that are going in to the catalog every year,” said Smith, meaning that on average less than 1% of the roses tested make it into Star’s portfolio annually. “It’s a really long and loving process to launch a rose,” said Morgan. “We want to release the very best.” While many people had a hand in finding the perfect rose to carry Stewart’s name, it was ultimately Martha’s choice. “Martha personally chose and approved the rose,” confirmed a spokesperson from a public relations agency that represents Stewart, in an email to CNN. “I am so happy that such a great rose is named after me and that many of you will be adding it to your garden!”, said Stewart in an Instagram post on her verified account last week. Stewart also thanked Hahn who “worked with me for two years to make this happen”. While new to the North American market, this same rose has been available since 2021 in Europe, where it is known as “Jean de la Fontaine.” “Oftentimes a rose introduced in Europe will receive a different name in America,” said Morgan. When choosing a name for commercial use, cultivators pick “something to catch people’s attention,” said Beth Smiley, publications director of the American Rose Society. “The Martha Stewart rose is going to attract a lot of attention”. There is no “financial benefit for having a rose named after you — absolutely zero,” said Hahn. In a statement provided to CNN, Star Roses said: “This rose has been named in honor of Martha Stewart, recognizing her extraordinary contributions to lifestyle, design, homemaking, and gardening… Our hope is that this rose will honor her legacy and serve as a source of inspiration for generations to come.” While there are only a limited number of Martha Stewart rose plants are available for pre-order, if you miss out this year, the variety is expected to be available at independent garden centers in 2026. As a repeat bloomer, you can expect the Martha Stewart rose to flower in flushes through the growing season. Smith said that while the rose has performed well in hot, dry climates like California, “it does get some leaf spot in areas that are more susceptible to fungal diseases, but it is better than older varieties of hybrid tea types.” But it’s the scent that’s the standout for this plant. “It’s not a traditional rose fragrance,” said Hahn. “It’s fruitier, it’s light, it’s luscious. You feel like you could eat it."

On Tuesday, the day after the inauguration of President Donald J. Trump, many Instagram and Facebook users found themselves following him on the social media apps even though they had not signed up to do so. What gives? Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said it was part of a regular process in which White House social media accounts are handed over when a new president takes office. It added that there were some other bugs in the process that may have mucked up the gears of the transition. Let’s walk through what happened. Why am I following Donald Trump, Melania Trump and JD Vance on Instagram and Facebook? Just as the federal government has to deal with the transition of power between administrations, Meta has to deal with it, too. For years, companies like Meta and X — previously known as Facebook and Twitter, respectively — have had to handle the social media accounts held by the office of the president as it changed hands after an election. That ramped up after Barack Obama took office in 2008 and fully embraced social media to garner support from voters digitally. By 2016, the companies needed to figure out how to hand those accounts off between administrations. Meta and X decided that the official POTUS, VP and first lady accounts on Facebook, Instagram and X would be switched to the new administration while retaining the existing followers of those accounts. That meant that if you followed President Obama in 2016, you were automatically switched over to follow President Trump when he took office in his first administration in 2017. Mr. Obama’s posts were archived under a different handle, while Mr. Trump’s account reset with none of Mr. Obama’s old posts attached. That transition occurred again in 2020, when Joseph R. Biden Jr. was elected and took over the official presidential account. On Monday, after Mr. Trump was sworn in, the switch occurred again. That’s why you may be seeing his posts in your feed now. But I swear I wasn’t following any presidential accounts before. Lots of people have said this week that they never followed Mr. Biden or Mr. Trump before and are sure they have been added as followers against their will. Meta said it wasn’t forcing people to follow Mr. Trump. “People were not made to automatically follow any of the official Facebook or Instagram accounts for the president, vice president or first lady,” Andy Stone, a Meta spokesman, said in a statement on Threads. “Those accounts are managed by the White House so with a new administration, the content on those pages changes.” One possible explanation: Four years between administrations is a long time and people can forget what accounts they signed up to follow. Editors’ Picks Kristen Stewart Thinks the Critics at Cannes Are Being Too Nice These Boomer Radicals in Vermont Just Want to Be ‘Good Progressives’ How to Manage Your Blood Sugar With Exercise When I try to unfollow these accounts, the apps won’t let me. What’s up with that? This is where it’s not you, it’s Meta. The company said it “may take some time for follow and unfollow requests to go through” as the account transitions occur. It is possible that the company is receiving such a high volume of unfollow requests during the transition that it is running into errors processing them all. Meta claims it will be sorted out soon, but declined to go into detail on why it was happening. Why am I seeing recommendations to follow President Trump’s and Vice President Vance’s accounts? This is another instance of a sweeping change at Meta. The company previously insisted that users did not want to see political content across its apps and had removed that type of content on Facebook, Instagram and Threads. That meant people saw fewer posts and accounts related to politicians and contentious social issues. It was Meta’s way of making its platform seem, well, a bit nicer. But this year, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, did an about-face and started reinserting political content into people’s feeds. He and others at Meta said that was because they heard people wanted to see more political content again. The change was part of a larger shift at Meta to allow more types of posts and content to spread across its platform in the Trump era. You can change your settings in Facebook and Instagram to see fewer political posts. I’m also seeing people talk about censoring Democrats on social media. What is that about? Add this one to the list of Meta’s screw-ups. On Tuesday, people began noticing that they could not search for posts that included the hashtag “#democrats” on some of Meta’s apps. That, along with the new Trump administration and Mr. Zuckerberg’s recent embrace of Mr. Trump, led people to believe that the company was forcing posts from Democrats out of their apps. Not true, Meta said, adding it had made an unfortunate error that it was working quickly to fix. Mr. Stone said that because of the error, users were unable to search for a gamut of topics and the mistake was affecting “not just those on the left.”