IRS Grants Late Filing Penalty Relief for 2012 Returns

Any businesses and individuals filing forms required under the American Taxpayer Relief Act that were not available until after January can request a tax filing extension without any penalty. Usually a late penalty charge of 0.5 percent per month would apply to any tax payments made after the filing deadline. However, because certain forms required for 2012 tax returns were not available until February or March, the IRS will allow taxpayers to file and make any additional payments due under the forms by the new extended due date without any penalty charge. All other estimated tax payments must be paid by the regular filing deadline.

To be eligible for this relief, the business or taxpayer must request a tax filing extension by the proper deadline and then file and pay any additional amount due by the extended deadline. A complete list of IRS forms that qualify under this relief is available in IRS Notice 2013-24 on the IRS website. They include forms claiming certain depreciation deductions and business tax credits. Additional information and instructions on qualifying for this penalty relief is available in the IRS Notice.