IRS Offers Penalty Relief to Storm Victims Unable to File by the Tax Deadline

Tornados, high winds, and baseball-sized hail wreaked havoc on the South and Midwest last week and over the weekend.  As a result, there were power outages and transportation issues, making it difficult for some taxpayers and tax professionals to meet the April 15th tax deadline.

The IRS announced that it will provide penalty relief to taxpayers impacted by the storms who were not able to file or pay taxes due until after the April 15th tax deadline.

If you were impacted by the storms, you may qualify for relief of the late-filing penalty of 5% per month and the late-payment penalty of 0.5 percent per month as long as there is reasonable cause and you file your tax return or pay the taxes due within a reasonable time after the power outages and transportation problems are resolved.

If you receive a penalty notice from the IRS and you were impacted by the storms, the IRS will remove the late-filing and late-payment penalty.

Don’t forget, if you suffer a casualty loss from a federally declared disaster, you may be able to deduct the casualty loss on your tax return for the previous tax year or amended tax return for the preceding year.