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Washington, D.C.—As the 2016 tax-filing season kicks off today, taxpayers who seek assistance from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will continue to face challenges although the agency received a small funding increase for this year, according to the head of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).

After five straight years of budget cuts, Congress increased the IRS’s fiscal year (FY) 2016 budget by $290 million over last year’s level, specifying that the extra funding must be used to improve customer service, crack down on identity theft and increase cybersecurity. But according to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen, the agency had asked for $700 million for those three programs for FY 2016.

NTEU National President Tony Reardon called the $290 million increase a good first step.

“The IRS still has a long way to go to rebuild its workforce so it can provide taxpayers with the level of customer service they need and deserve,” Reardon said. “The IRS was devastated by the loss of 18,000 employees and budget cuts totaling $1.2 billion between 2010 and 2015. While the extra $290 million will help, the truth is the IRS won’t be able to hire as many employees as it needs to do a thorough and efficient job of helping taxpayers understand and comply with the federal tax code.”

In a recent report, Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson blamed severe budget cuts for the IRS’ abysmal customer service record during the 2015 filing season. For instance, just 38 percent of taxpayers who called with questions were able to get through to IRS employees, and that was only after being put on hold on average for more than 30 minutes. Lines also were longer than ever at skeletally-staffed Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs) last year.

“Taxpayers can expect some improvement in 2016, but they should still brace themselves for dropped calls, extended hold times and long lines,” President Reardon said.

To make the best of the upcoming tax season, he offered taxpayers some tips from front-line IRS employees who are represented by NTEU:

Get your taxes done early, especially if they are complicated. If you need help from the IRS, call or visit well before the filing deadline, which is April 18 this year. Waiting until the last minute is a bad idea because that’s when demand will be at its peak.

Before you visit your local TAC, check if you need an appointment. Some TACs now operate only by appointment to ensure taxpayers can get the service they need without having to wait in line. Click on the map or state links below to see if your local TAC requires appointments: https://www.irs.gov/uac/Contact-Your-Local-IRS-Office-

If you’re filing a paper return, don’t forget to sign your return before putting it in the mail. If it is a joint return, both parties must sign. A surprisingly high number of paper filers forget to do this and end up delaying their refund or having to pay late fees.

Verify everything on your form before you file it, including names, Social Security numbers and birth dates of all dependents. Errors can be costly.

If you need an extension beyond April 18 to file your return, there is a form for that. Better yet, use the Free File link on www.IRS.gov and get an extension online for free. But remember that the extension is only for filing the return, not on paying what you owe. You must pay some or all of the amount by the filing deadline.

You can set up a payment agreement online. Visit www.IRS.gov to make the arrangements. Type “payment agreement” in the search box.

Make sure your computers have updated security software. While the IRS, state authorities and private companies continue improve cybersecurity, taxpayers also play a role in protecting their sensitive financial and tax information from criminals. Visit www.irs.gov/taxessecuritytogether to learn more.

Keep copies of all documents and returns for at least three years in case the IRS has questions later.

NTEU, the nation’s largest independent federal-employee union, represents 150,000 employees in 31 agencies and departments.