What Are The Drawbacks To Letting The IRS File An SFR On Your Behalf? If you don’t look forward to filing your taxes, having the IRS file your return for you might not sound so bad. However, there are several drawbacks to the Substitute for Return (SFR) filed by the IRS: The SFR might not give you tax credits you should be eligible for, such as the Child Tax Credit. The SFR might not include all of your dependents. If you itemize, the SFR won’t include your mortgage interest deduction or charitable contribution deduction. You might miss out on business expense deductions, such as the home office deduction. In short, the SFR will likely result in a much higher tax liability than if you filed a return yourself.