by MEA Tax Advisors | Mar 29, 2020 | Tax Tips and News
Do not respond to phone calls or emails asking for information or payments to process your stimulus check!
The ink hasn’t dried on the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress this week, but the tax industry is reporting that scammers are already trying to take advantage of taxpayers. Their goal is to capitalize on millions of taxpayers anticipating stimulus money by deploying phone- and email-based phishing scams.
Apparently, scammers posing as IRS representatives are calling and emailing taxpayers to request personally identifiable information or fees that they say are required to qualify for the upcoming stimulus payments. In some cases, the ploy suggests the money is available now, which is not the case. As with other phishing scams, fraudsters intend to use that information to make a quick buck.
The tax industry wants to remind everyone that government representatives will not contact taxpayers seeking information or payments as part of the stimulus payment program. In fact, the only communication planned at this time, according to the CARES Act, is a confirmation letter that will be mailed to taxpayers after the stimulus payments have been distributed.
The CARES Act specifies that the IRS will send letters to taxpayers within 15 days of payments being issued. The letters outline three things:
- How the IRS issued payment
- How much the IRS paid
- How to contact the IRS if payment wasn’t received
Until we learn the details of the IRS’s process for sending stimulus payments, taxpayers should be on high alert for stimulus-related scams.
Those who are targeted by the stimulus scam should report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission as soon as possible. One of the keys to combatting phishing scams is simply knowing that they exist in the first place.
– Story provided by TaxingSubjects.com
by MEA Tax Advisors | Mar 21, 2020 | Tax Tips and News
Tax Day is now July 15!
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced on Twitter that taxpayers now have an additional 90 days to file their tax returns.
On Tuesday, March 17, 2020, Mnuchin announced in the president’s coronavirus task force press conference that individuals owing up to $1 million and corporations owing up to $10 million would have an additional 90 days to pay their taxes. This latest announcement (March 20) sets both the filing and payment deadlines to the same day, removing any potential Tax Day confusion.
Mnuchin today wrote, “At @realDonaldTrump’s direction, we are moving Tax Day from April 15 to July 15. All taxpayers and businesses will have this additional time to file and make payments without interest or penalties.” One minute later, he echoed a recommendation from the Tuesday presser: “I encourage all taxpayers who may have tax refunds to file now to get your money.”
These latest delays are in direct response to concerns over COVID-19, the coronavirus outbreak that has led to school and business closures across the country. For the latest COVID-19 announcements, be sure to check the “Coronavirus Tax Relief” page on IRS.gov and the “How to Protect Yourself” page on CDC.gov.
Source: Twitter (@stevenmnuchin1)
– Story provided by TaxingSubjects.com
by MEA Tax Advisors | Mar 21, 2020 | Tax Tips and News
Last Updated: March 20, 2020 at 6:19 p.m.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced on Friday, March 20, 2020 that the federal filing deadline was being moved to July 15, 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. State departments of revenue are expected to follow suit, so we have begun building a list of affected state individual income tax return deadlines. We will update this list as we receive new information.
Note: We are including quotes from the departments of revenue that have announced the intention of extending the deadline, but have not yet published an official date. Those states that do not have a firm date will include an “expected individual income tax deadline.”
- Alabama
“The Department plans to mirror these return filing extensions as appropriate and enter corresponding taxpayer relief orders. Please monitor the Department’s Newsroom for updates.”Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- CaliforniaIndividual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- Connecticut
“Individuals in the process of preparing their Connecticut income tax (Form CT-1040) returns due April 15, should be advised that DRS will adjust due dates for filing and payment of state income taxes to align with any specific, actionable announcement from the Internal Revenue Service regarding due dates for the filing and payment of federal income taxes.”
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- Indiana
“DOR is closely monitoring the IRS on possible changes to filing and payment due dates and will be prepared to follow suit.”
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- Iowa
Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 31, 2020
- Maryland“If the IRS extends its April 15th filing deadline for corporate and individual income tax returns, Maryland will conform to the decision of the IRS.
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- Massachusetts
“In the event the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issues tax relief to taxpayers with federal filing obligations, DOR is prepared to follow the IRS in offering similar relief for taxpayers with Massachusetts tax filing obligations.”
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- North Carolina
“The NCDOR is mirroring this payment extension to the greatest extent possible under current state law. While the NCDOR is waiving late payment penalties through July 15, state law prevents waiving any interest.”
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- Oregon
“If the IRS declares the April 15th due date to be extended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Oregon will automatically connect to those dates for personal income tax filers.”
Expected Individual Income Tax Deadline: July 15, 2020
- South Carolina
“Tax returns and payments due April 1 – June 1 will now be due June 1, 2020. Penalty and interest will not be charged if payment is made by June 1.”
Individual Income Tax Deadline: June 1, 2020
– Story provided by TaxingSubjects.com
MEA Tax Advisors