Of Extensions And Relief

We have briefly mentioned it along the way – and you knew it was coming when you set things up like this – but if you put your tax return on an extension, you now have less than two weeks to file.  Yes, even if it feels hard to believe, your six extra months are just about up.

And as we have also said before, there are many legitimate reasons why someone could have needed a tax extension. That time runs out, though, so this is a final warning to get things done no matter why you ended up in this spot.

As we have gone through those six months, though, of course a lot of other things have been going on. And high on that list of things are weather emergencies. If these feel like they have been occurring all across the country, that’s because they have. And that also means that many people have been granted some extra time to file various taxes without needing an extension.

This latest bit of relief came out last week for parts of Louisiana impacted by seawater intrusion. Were you even aware that happened? Were you even aware that seawater intrusion was a thing? So yes, be it hurricanes, fire, or seawater intrusion, be it in Maine, Alaska, Indiana, Hawaii, Vermont, or California, those are just some of the reasons and some of the places that have received some relief from the IRS this year. And if you want to look up if you are in any of these affected areas, you can find the list of guidance measures issued by the IRS at www.irs.gov/newsroom/tax-relief-in-disaster-situations

Like so many things in life, all of this comes down to timing. And when it comes to timing, of course, procrastination comes into play. So I will close with another plea to avoid this when possible.

For again, there are legitimates reasons that a taxpayer may need an extension, but more often than that, they happen because someone didn’t get things done in time. And as we have seen with the wild weather across the country, unexpected things happen that may prevent you from getting things done on time. But could you really not have got things done yet or had you just not done it? For sure, it is great if the IRS can offer time to help people take care of things more important than a tax return, but wouldn’t it feel even better if you didn’t have any returns left hanging? 

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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