New Tax Deadlines

by Augusto Egoavil
April 20, 2020

On April 9, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-23, extending deadlines for the filing of a large number of forms and for making certain related payments. Deadlines have been extended in furtherance of those extensions made under Notice 2020-17 dated March 18, 2020, as superseded by Notices 2020-18 and 2020-20.

IRC Section 7508A gives the Treasury Department the authority to postpone the time to perform certain acts required under the Code for taxpayers affected by a federally declared disaster (as defined in Code Section 165(i)(5)(A)). Notice 2020-17 originally provided relief to individual U.S. taxpayers adversely affected by the COVID-19 emergency declaration made by the President on March 13, 2020, allowing them to extend the due date to pay their federal income taxes and tax on self-employment income due on April 15, 2020 until July 15, 2020.

Notices 2020-18 and 2020-20, which superseded Notice 2020-17, expanded the relief to include federal gift tax and generation skipping taxes due on April 15, 2020 until July 15, 2020.

Notice 2020-23 amplified relief to include individuals, partnerships, corporations, and non-profit associations. Generally all types of Form 1040 for individuals who are U.S. citizens/residents, non-resident aliens, and Puerto Ricans are included. Also, all types of Forms 1120 for filing and payment of income taxes by all types of corporations are also included in the relief.

The extension also applies to the filing and payment of income taxes by partnerships, REMICS, estates and trusts, as well as to the filing and payment of federal estate and gift taxes and GST.

Other specific forms included in the relief for postponement of filing and payment of federal taxes are:

• Form 8971, Information Regarding Beneficiaries Acquiring Property from a  Decedent and any supplemental Form 8971;
• Form 990-T, Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Return;
• Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation or Trust Treated as Private Foundation;
• Form 4720, Return of Certain Excise Taxes under Chapters 41 and 42 of the Internal Revenue Code;
• Form 990-W, Estimated Tax on Unrelated Business Taxable Income for Tax-Exempt Organizations.
• The filing of other informational forms such as Forms 3520, 5471, 5472, 8621, 8858, 8865, and 8938 have been extended until July 15, 2020.

The relief also extends to specified time sensitive actions, that are due to be performed on or after April 1, 2020, and before July 15, 2020, such as the time for filing all petitions with the Tax Court, or for review of a decision rendered by the Tax Court, filing a claim for credit or refund of any tax, and bringing suit upon a claim for credit or refund of any tax.

Relief is also being applied to “Affected Taxpayers,” meaning those taxpayers currently under examination (including an investigation to determine liability for an assessable penalty under the Code, or whose cases are with the Independent Office of Appeals; or who, during the period beginning on or after April 6, 2020 and ending before July 15, 2020, file amended returns or submit payments with respect to a tax for which the time for assessment would otherwise expire during this period. With respect to those Affected Taxpayers, a 30-day postponement is granted for time-sensitive actions if the last date for performance of the action is on or after April 6 but before July 15, 2020.

It is important to bear in mind that for those taxpayers who had a deadline to file income taxes by March 15, 2020 or April 15, 2020 that, in order to elect to take advantage of the original six-month extension to file and pay their 2019 income taxes by September 15 or October 15, 2020, they must file for an extension before July 15, 2020. They should also bear in mind that interest charges will be computed on taxes due on July 15, 2020 for 2019 taxes that are not paid as of such date.