01 Jan 2026, 01:16 PM IST i The IRS refers to the Internal Revenue Service — the agency of the United States government responsible for collecting federal taxes and enforcing tax laws. It performs a role similar to India’s Income Tax Department. The comment came in response to a post on X that shared a chart on income tax payments in the US. The chart said the top five % of taxpayers accounted for a large share of federal income tax paid in 2021, while lower income groups contributed far less. Musk wrote that he paid so much in taxes one year that it “broke the IRS computer,” adding that there were too many digits and the software had to be updated to process the payment. The post revived debate about how much Musk has paid in taxes and how those payments compare with his wealth gains and the government support received by his companies. In earlier posts, Musk has publicly addressed his tax payments. In 2021, he said he would pay more than $11 billion in taxes that year. ALSO READ