In the final stretch of tax filing season, the IRS is churning out refunds that are slightly bigger than last year.

With less than two weeks to go before the filing deadline, the IRS has already paid out 73 million tax refunds, averaging $2,831 apiece, according to the latest IRS statistics from Jan. 31 through March 28. That's up 1.5% from the same period last year.

The average refund amount generally declines throughout tax season, as the rush of filers eager to claim huge refunds slows down. Between Jan. 31 and Feb. 28, the average refund was $3,034.

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The agency has received nearly 91 million returns so far.

That's about 60% of the 148 million returns it expects to get. The vast majority of refunds have been received by direct deposit, and 91% of returns were filed electronically.

Taxpayers have until Tuesday, April 15, to file their taxes this year.