COLUMBIA, S.C. — If you were a victim of Hurricane Idalia or live or have a business in the designated disaster area, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced it is extending the deadline for filing individual or business tax returns or making tax payments.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declared the following counties as disaster areas: Abbeville, Allendale, Aiken, Anderson, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Calhoun, Charleston, Cherokee. Chester, Chesterfield, Clarendon, Colleton, Darlington, Dillon, Dorchester, Edgefield, Fairfield, Florence, Georgetown, Greenville, Greenwood, Hampton, Horry, Jasper, Kershaw, Lancaster, Laurens, Lee, Lexington, Marion, Marlboro, McCormick, Newberry, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Saluda, Spartanburg, Sumter, Union, Williamsburg, and York. This FEMA designation allows the IRS to postpone certain tax filing and payment deadlines for those residing or having businesses in the disaster area.
In this case, certain taxpayers with deadlines falling on or after Aug. 29, 2023, and before Feb. 15, 2024, will now have until Feb. 15, 2024, to file returns and pay any taxes originally due during this period. This includes 2022 individual income tax returns due on Oct. 16, 2023. The IRS noted, however, that because tax payments related to these 2022 returns were due on April 18, 2023, those payments are not eligible for this relief.
The Feb. 15, 2024 deadline also covers:
- quarterly estimated tax payments, normally due on Sept. 15, 2023, and Jan. 16, 2024
- businesses with an original or extended due date, including, among others, calendar-year partnerships and S corporations whose 2022 extensions run out on Sept. 15, 2023
- filing of Form 5500 series returns that were required to be filed on or after Aug. 29, 2023, and before Feb. 15, 2024
- penalties on payroll and excise tax deposits due on or after Aug. 29, 2023, and before Sept. 11, 2023, will be abated -- as long as the tax deposits are made by Sept. 11, 2023.
Affected taxpayers whom the IRS contacts on a collection or examination matter should explain how the disaster impacts them so that the IRS can provide appropriate consideration to their case. Taxpayers may download forms and publications from the official IRS website, IRS.gov.
The IRS automatically identifies taxpayers in the covered disaster area and applies filing and payment relief. However, affected taxpayers who reside or have a business outside the covered disaster area should call the IRS disaster hotline at 866-562-5227 to request this tax relief.
