Tax Planning

Can I Still File My Taxes? 3 Steps To Take if You Missed the Deadline

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Written by TurboTaxLisa
Published Apr 16, 2024 - [Updated Apr 14, 2026]
5 min read
Reviewed by Lena Hanna, CPA Thomas Murphy, CPA

Key takeaways

Missing the tax deadline doesn’t mean you’re out of options. You can still file your return today.
If the IRS owes you a refund, you won’t be charged with a late filing penalty, but you won’t get your refund until you file.
Filing your return now halts certain penalties from increasing.

I kept telling myself I’d get to it next weekend. Things just kept getting in the way.

Then the calendar showed April 16th, and I realized I had missed the tax filing deadline. That’s when the panic set in.

But, after some digging into how to file taxes late, I found out that missing the deadline wasn’t as catastrophic as I thought. There were still options, and the steps were more straightforward than I expected.

If you missed the tax deadline, you can still file your return today.

Three steps to help you get your taxes back on track

1. File now (don’t wait any longer)

If you haven’t filed your taxes yet, don’t panic. Filing your taxes late is more common than you think, and the process is the same as filing on time. If you are among the majority of taxpayers that are expecting a tax refund, you will not receive a penalty for filing late. To get your money as quickly as possible, simply go to TurboTax Online and e-file your return with direct deposit.

2. Use e-file with direct deposit

Even though you missed the deadline, you can still go online for an extended period of time and e-file your taxes with TurboTax . You can also e-file your return with TurboTax Desktop. E-file typically allows the IRS to receive and process your tax return quicker than if you mailed it in. You will also receive an acknowledgment of receipt once it’s accepted.

Mailing your return tends to be a slow process. E-filing with direct deposit is the fastest way to get your refund, and the IRS issues nine out of 10 refunds within 21 days of acceptance.

3. Pay any taxes owed

If you didn’t file an extension in April and you owe taxes, you’ll have a failure-to-file penalty and a failure-to-pay penalty for not filing your return and paying the balance due. If you file now, even if you cannot pay the entire amount due, your overall penalties will be reduced. The longer you wait to file and pay, the bigger the interest and penalties. Some taxpayers put off filing because they owe money and don’t know how they’ll pay. If this is you, don’t delay.

File as soon as possible, pay what you can, and then request a payment plan from the IRS, which has several options to help you manage your balance due. You can set up a:

Short-term payment plan: Pay what you owe within 180 days.
Long-term installment agreement: Pay what you owe in monthly installments over an agreed period of time.
Installment agreement qualification:Your total taxes, penalties, and interest are less than $100,000 under a short-term payment plan or $50,000 under a long-term payment plan. If qualified, you can request an installment agreement online.

Get professional help to file your late taxes

Don’t worry if you missed the deadline. You can still file your late taxes with TurboTax. If you’re not sure how to file taxes late, TurboTax walks you through every step. No matter what moves you made last year, TurboTax will make them count on your taxes. Whether you want to do your taxes yourself or have a TurboTax expert file for you, we’ll make sure you get every dollar you deserve and your biggest possible refund — guaranteed.

Victims of recent federally declared disasters often qualify for certain extended tax deadlines. You can find out specific extended deadlines for disaster relief or tax provisions for states affected by disasters from the IRS.

FAQs

You may still want to. Every year, over $1 billion in tax refunds go unclaimed. The income threshold for filing a return for tax year 2025 is $15,750 if filing single and $31,500 if married filing jointly. However, having income below that threshold doesn’t mean you should skip your return. If federal income taxes (not Social Security and Medicare) were withheld from your paychecks, or you qualify for credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit, filing a return could possibly put money back in your pocket.

A first-time penalty abatement is a one-time IRS program that can eliminate a late-filing or late-payment penalty if you have a clean compliance history. To qualify, you need to be in compliance with required tax filings for the past three tax years and have had no IRS penalties during that period.

Starting in 2026, the IRS implemented the Automatic First-Time Abatement. If qualified, the IRS identifies eligibility and applies the waiver without the taxpayer requesting one.

If you haven’t received an automatic waiver, you can request one by completing the following steps:

1. File all required returns and make sure you are current on your filing requirements.

2. Pay your taxes owed or set up a payment plan. Note that the failure-to-pay penalty will continue to grow until your balance is paid in full.

3. Follow the instructions in any IRS notice you received. Some requests can be approved over the phone using the number on your notice.

4. If you cannot resolve it by phone, submit Form 843 by mail.

If the IRS owes you a refund, missing the deadline is less serious than you might think. There is no late-filing penalty when you are owed a refund. However, that refund won’t show up automatically. You have to file your return to claim it.

There is one deadline worth knowing. The IRS gives you three years from the original filing deadline to claim your refund. Miss that window, and the money goes to the U.S. Treasury permanently. You won’t be able to get it back.

Whether you owe taxes or are getting a refund, filing sooner rather than later is still the right move.

If April 15 has already passed, you can no longer file an extension for that tax year. The window to request one closes on the tax deadline itself.

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Lisa has over 20 years of experience in tax preparation. Her success is attributed to being able to interpret tax laws and help clients better understand them. She has held positions as a public auditor, controller, and operations manager. Lisa has appeared on the Steve Harvey Show, the Ellen Show, and major news broadcast to break down tax laws and help taxpayers understand what tax laws mean to them. For Lisa, getting timely and accurate information out to taxpayers to help them keep more of their money is paramount. More from Lisa Greene-Lewis