On March 20, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Notice 2020–18https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-20-18.pdf, extending the deadline for payment and filing of federal income taxes for the 2019 taxable year as well as any estimated income tax payments for the 2020 taxable year to July 15, 2020. This extension applies to any individual, trust, estate, partnership, association, company, or corporation with a federal income tax return or payment due April 15, 2020. The notice also confirmed that interest will not accrue on taxes owed and penalties will not apply for the postponement period beginning April 15, 2020, and ending July 15, 2020. However, these changes do not apply to any federal payment other than income tax payments, nor do they apply to state filings or payments, unless a taxpayer's state independently implements similar changes.
Relatedly, on March 31, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020–22, which permits employers to immediately receive the benefits of certain employment tax credits available under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and CARES Act by reducing employment tax deposits that such employers would otherwise be required to submit to the IRS (including any deposits attributable to income and employment taxes withheld from amounts paid to an employee) without penalty. Additionally, on the same date, the IRS released Form 7200 (and instructions to the Form 7200) allowing for advance payment of the available employment tax credits to employers. If you would like further details on IRS extensions and other relief measures, Shearman's client publication on the topic, available here, may be of interest.
Originally published 13 May, 2020
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