Will I have to pay a penalty for filing late?

There is a failure to file penalty (also known as the late filing penalty) for taxpayers who file after the April 15 deadline. However, this only affects those who owe the IRS taxes. If you have a refund, you are not subject to any penalties.

You are subject to:

• 5% of unpaid tax per month or part of a month the return is late for up to 5 months
• Applies for a full month, even if the return is filed less than 30 days late
• A minimum late filing penalty when filed more than 60 days after the return due date, including extensions.

The minimum filing penalty is the LESSER of two amounts – 100% of the tax required to be shown on the return that you didn’t pay on time, or a specific dollar amount subject to change annually due to inflation. Below are the specific dollar amounts:

• $435 for returns due on or after 1/1/2020*
• $210 for returns due between 1/1/2018 and 12/31/2019
• $205 for returns due between 1/1/2016 and 12/31/2017
• $135 for returns due between 1/1/2009 and 12/31/2015
• $100 for returns due before 1/1/2009

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 21st, 2021 at 3:58 pm and is filed under Late Tax Filing FAQ, Tax Related Questions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.