Tax Day Delayed to July 15, 2020 – Treasury Secretary’s Tweet Now Official

March 23, 2020 Advisory

The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are providing relief to all taxpayers who have federal income tax returns and federal income tax payments due on April 15, 2020. The April 15, 2020, deadline is postponed to July 15, 2020. Associated interest, additions to tax, and penalties for late filing or late payment will be suspended until July 15, 2020.

Notice 2020-18 states that the U.S. Treasury Department and IRS have determined that any person (i.e., individual, trust, estate, partnership, LLC, corporation) with a federal income tax payment or return due on April 15, 2020, is affected by the COVID-19 emergency. Therefore, the deadline for filing federal income tax returns and making federal income tax payments (including estimated tax payments for 2020) is automatically postponed to July 15, 2020. There is no limit on the amount of payment that may be postponed. (Note: Notice 2020-18 supersedes Notice 2020-17, under which postponed payments were limited to $10 million for certain corporate income tax filers and $1 million for individuals and other taxpayers.)

While this applies only to federal income tax payments and returns that are due on April 15, 2020, some states are also providing their own taxpayer relief. In Missouri, for example, the tax deadline for filing returns and paying taxes has been extended until July 15, 2020. In Illinois, the state tax filing period generally is the same as a taxpayer’s federal filing period (which would include the federal income tax postponement), and for certain taxpayers the state is waiving any penalties and interest that would have been imposed on late sales tax payments.

For additional information on recent IRS guidance for high-deductible health plans health savings accounts for COVID-19 testing and treatment visit the IRS Coronavirus Webpage. Armstrong Teasdale’s attorneys will continue to monitor and provide updates regarding these developments. If you have a question or require guidance on these or other points, please do not hesitate to contact us.