As the numbers of confirmed cases of COVID-19 continue to increase in the United States, the federal government is taking action to reduce the impact on taxpayers. Specifically, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced that the tax filing season been pushed to July 15, 2020.
Today, the IRS issued guidance, making official the announcement tweeted by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (and subsequently retweeted by the IRS). The guidance makes clear that the due date for filing tax returns and making tax payments has been extended from April 15 to July 15.
You can read the guidance here (downloads as a PDF).
According to the guidance, on March 13, 2020, the President of the United States issued an emergency declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in response to the ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (Emergency Declaration). The Emergency Declaration instructed the Secretary of the Treasury “to provide relief from tax deadlines to Americans who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 emergency, as appropriate, pursuant to 26 USC. 7508A(a).”
As a result, the Treasury has announced that the due date for filing federal income tax returns AND making federal income tax payments is automatically postponed to July 15, 2020. You do not have to file for an extension.
Source - Forbes.com
