On March 20, 2020 U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced on Twitter that the U.S. tax filing deadline for 2019 individual and business tax returns would be extended to July 15, 2020. In response and to clarify Mnuchin’s Tweet, the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2020-18, and IR 2020-58.
Notice 2020-18 states that the due date for individual, trusts and estate, corporations and other non-corporate income tax returns which were previously due April 15, 2020 is automatically postponed until July 15, 2020. Notice 2020-18 also provides that taxpayers can defer federal income tax payments (including payments of tax on self-employment income), and federal estimated income tax payments (including payments of tax on self-employment income) to July 15, 2020 without penalties and interest, regardless of the amount owed. Taxpayers are not required to file an extension in order to take advantage of this postponed tax filing date.
However, taxpayers who need additional time beyond the July 15, 2020 deadline, will need to file for an extension (Forms 4868 or 7004), and payments made after July 15, 2020 will incur interest and penalties.
Please note, Notice 2020-18 does not grant, an extension of time to file tax forms for non-profit organizations.
Further, due to the change in the tax filing deadline, contributions made to Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA) and Health Savings Accounts (HSA) made before July 15, 2020, can be deemed to have been made in 2019.
However, Notice 2020-18 does not address whether taxpayers are entitled to an extension of the time to make contributions to their individual retirement accounts (IRA) or Health Savings Accounts (HSA) for 2019. Therefore, until further guidance is issued by the Internal Revenue Service, contributions made to IRAs and HSAs must be made by April 15, 2020.
Finally, Notice 2020-18 only applies to federal tax returns, and does not effect the tax deadline of state income tax returns. However, on March 20, 2020 Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear announced in his daily press conference that Kentucky would follow suit with the federal government and change the due date for individual and business tax returns to July 15, 2020.
The Internal Revenue Service has established a special section of their website focused on detailing their steps to help taxpayers affected by the coronavirus. If you have further questions, please check the Internal Revenue Service’s website for the latest information. These tax changes have been changing quickly, and it seems that more details might change in the further days and weeks, therefore it is always important to consult with your tax advisor.