Friday, July 10 is the last day for tens of millions of U.S. taxpayers to file for a potential COVID-related IRS refund. Taxpayers who don’t file with the IRS to protect a potential refund or abatement will lose the chance forever.
The potential tax refund stems from a federal judge’s ruling in Kwong v. United States late last year suggesting the federal tax filing and payment deadlines were automatically suspended during the federally declared COVID-19 disaster period from January 20, 2020, through May 11, 2023.
The government is appealing the ruling, but if the decision stands, millions of taxpayers who paid or were charged late fees or interest during those 3.5 years may be due a refund since everything was on hold.
The IRS quietly added a tool to its website to allow electronic filings of the form necessary to claim the potential refund of paid fees from Jan. 20, 2020 through May 11, 2023.
Tens of millions of taxpayers may be entitled to refunds or abatements of penalties and interest that the IRS assessed during the nearly 3.5-year COVID-19 federal disaster period, but the only way to receive relief is to file a claim by July 10. If no claim is filed, you will forever lose the chance to receive a potential refund or abatement.
“Time is critical for people considering filing a claim,” said Glen Frost, Frost Law’s founding partner.
How Do You Know if You Qualify and How to File?
Independent National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) Erin Collins, as well as law firms and accountants, have published guidelines and steps for Americans to take to figure this out.
Though most of the focus has been on potential refunds or abatements, Collins said the court’s ruling in Kwong v. United States may affect other tax-related deadlines. They include whether some taxpayers may still be eligible to claim tax refunds for prior years such as withholding, estimated tax payments, refundable credits, Recovery Rebate Credits or other tax benefits for those years.
“This may include taxpayers who never filed original returns, as well as taxpayers who may benefit from filing amended returns to claim additional credits, deductions, or payments,” she said.
Taxpayers Should Act Quickly
Taxpayers who may be affected should review their records now and consider whether they need to file a refund claim, an amended return, an original return, an abatement request, or a protective claim. With the July 10 deadline fast approaching, the fastest and surest way to get your claim in now is with the IRS’ electronic filing tool.
“A protective claim can preserve a taxpayer’s right to a refund while the law remains unsettled,” Collins said. “Filing a claim does not guarantee relief. But missing the deadline may permanently prevent taxpayers from receiving a refund to which they may ultimately be entitled.”
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