Don’t Miss This Tax Deadline If You Filed for an Extension
If you’ve filed for a 2023 tax return extension and haven’t finished filing your return yet, it’s crunch time: The deadline to file your 2023 tax return is Tuesday, October 15, and failure to file may result in a penalty.
The IRS allows individuals to request a six-month extension to the standard April 15 tax filing deadline, but that only gives you extra time to get your paperwork together. Any taxes are still due in April, at which point you’ll also begin to incur interest and late fees. So if you haven’t filed or paid yet, you should make a plan to do both as soon as possible.
The penalty for failure to file a tax return is 5% of the amount of unpaid taxes for any month or partial month during which your return is delinquent, and cannot exceed 25% of your total bill. The nonpayment penalty is 0.5% of the amount of unpaid taxes for any month or partial month in which your account is delinquent, and is also capped at 25%, although you will also accrue interest until your balance is paid in full. (Although you can receive both types of fines at the same time, they partially offset each other: the number of non-payment penalties will be reduced by the amount of the non-payment penalty applied that month, so the maximum amount you will pay will be 5% rather than 5.5% ).
The IRS offers both short-term and long-term payment plans if you can’t pay your back taxes by the April 15 deadline, giving you an additional 180 days or up to 72 months, respectively. While you’ll still pay interest, the late payment penalty will be halved while you’re on your plan. You can set this up online .
Extension of application deadline due to natural disasters
While most taxpayers who were granted a filing extension should file their returns now, there are some exceptions for those in areas affected by natural disasters, including Hurricane Helen . Residents and businesses in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, as well as parts of Florida, Tennessee and Virginia, who approved the extension now have until May 1, 2025 to file 2023 tax returns. This period also automatically applies to returns in 2024.
Taxpayers in 25 states are currently eligible for an extension after October 15th—the IRS has more information about who is eligible for an extension on its website .
Please note that, like a standard extension, a disaster-related extension does not relieve you of your obligation to pay your tax bill on time. This only applies to filing your return.