IRS Provides Tax Relief to Victims of Hurricane Irene

The Internal Revenue Service issued a series of News Releases which provide tax relief to individual and business taxpayers affected by Hurricane Irene.

Certain taxpayers in North Carolina, New Jersey, New York and Puerto Rico will receive tax filing deadline postponements. These taxpayers include those businesses and individuals who reside in the specified areas as noted below. Other locations are expected to be added in coming days as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continues to assess the storm’s damage.

The tax relief postpones certain tax filing and payment deadlines to October 31, 2011. It includes corporations and businesses that previously obtained an extension until September 15, 2011, to file their 2010 returns and individuals and businesses that received a similar extension until October 17, 2011.

Relief is also extended for:

• Filing and payment of estimated tax payments for the third quarter of 2011, which would normally be due September 15, 2011.
• Failure to deposit penalties for employment and excise taxes due on or after August 27, 2011 and on or before September 12, 2011 as long as the deposits are made by September 12, 2011.

Additional details can be found in tax relief announcements for individual states on the IRS website, www.IRS.gov (see Tax Relief in Disaster Situations on www.IRS.gov for updates).

So far, IRS filing and payment relief applies to the following counties and municipalities (updated as of September 2, 2011):

• In North Carolina: Beaufort, Carteret, Craven, Dare, Halifax, Hyde, Lenoir, Pamlico and Tyrell;
• In New Jersey: Bergen, Essex, Morris, Passaic and Somerset;
• In New York: Albany, Delaware, Dutchess, Essex, Greene, Nassau, Rensselear, Schenectady, Schoharie , Ulster and Westchester; and
• In Puerto Rico: Caguas, Canovanas, Carolina, Cayey, Loiza, Luquillo and San Juan.

In addition to the above filing/payment provisions, an extension to September 22, 2011, for returns due September 15, 2011, is also granted to those taxpayers who do not reside in the specified areas, but whose tax return preparer is located in an area that was under an evacuation order or a severe weather warning because of Hurricane Irene (the preparer is not required to be located within a Federally declared disaster area).

It is expected that many states will follow suit and offer extended filing relief. As each state announces their program, Marcum will inform readers with follow up Tax Flashes. If you have any questions on the above information or need help with any state filing deadline related to the Hurricane, please contact your Marcum Tax Professional.