[author: Peter Ente]

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service announced March 21, 2020 that the federal income tax filing due date is automatically extended from April 15, 2020, to July 15, 2020, according to Notice 2020-18.

In addition, Taxpayers can also defer federal income tax payments due on April 15, 2020, until July 15, 2020, without penalties and interest, regardless of the amount owed. This deferment applies to all taxpayers, including individuals, trusts and estates, corporations and other non-corporate tax filers as well as those who pay self-employment tax.

For federal income tax purposes, the relief provided only applies to federal income tax returns and payments due with respect to a Taxpayer’s 2019 taxable year, and to federal estimated income tax payments due on April 15, 2020. The relief does not apply to the payment or deposit of any other type of federal tax (e.g., payroll tax), or to the filing of any federal information return.

Taxpayers do not need to take any action, file any forms or call the IRS to qualify for this automatic federal tax filing and payment relief.

Individual taxpayers who need additional time to file beyond the July 15 deadline can request a filing extension by filing Form 4868 (Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return). Note that an automatic extension beyond July 15^th applies only to the income tax filing obligation, not to the income tax payment obligation.

Taxpayers who are due a refund should file as soon as possible, as refund claims continue to be processed and paid. According to IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig “Filing electronically with direct deposit is the quickest way to get refunds.”

The State of California has also postponed until July 15, 2020, the filing and payment deadlines for all individuals and business entities for:

• 2019 tax returns;
• 2019 tax return payments;
• 2020 first and second quarter estimated payments;
• 2020 LLC taxes and fees; and
• 2020 Non-wage withholding payments.