FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas — The deadline to file your taxes is fast approaching.
Taxpayers are being reminded of the July 15 filing and payment deadline and are being warned against an increase in tax and COVID-19 scams.
Due to COVID-19, the original filing deadline and tax payment due date for 2019 was postponed from April 15 to July 15. Taxpayers filing Form 1040 series returns must file Form 4868 by July 15 to obtain the automatic extension to Oct. 15.
"Arkansans now have until next Wednesday, July 15th, to file their taxes," said Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge. "It's our responsibility, and we need to make sure Arkansans have that information and are aware of what they need to do to take care of that responsibility."
Tax experts in our area say to expect setbacks this year as the IRS is taking more time than usual to file claims.
"They just started coming back two to three weeks ago in full force, so there's still millions of documents sitting at the table at the IRS, even the lines we use for tax repair and accountants have been down this week due to overflow," said Amber Tejada at Liberty Tax.
Attorney General Rutledge says if you need more time to file your taxes, you must file a request for an extension by July 15.
"So next Wednesday, that's the big day. You can go to the department of finance and administrations website, or to irs.gov," Rutledge said.
As the filing deadline approaches, taxpayers should beware of tax and COVID-19 related scams.
“Criminals use the tax filing deadline as an opportunity to steal personal and financial information," said Acting U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes for the Western District of Arkansas. “Taxpayers should remain vigilant and know that the IRS will not initiate contact with them via phone, email or social media to request personal or financial information.”
“Although the extension provides additional time to file the tax return – it is not an extension to pay any taxes due," said Tamera Cantu, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-CI’s Dallas Field Office. “For people facing hardships who cannot pay in full, including those affected by COVID-19, the IRS has several options available to help. The IRS encourages taxpayers to visit IRS.gov as soon as possible to explore these options and avoid accruing interest and penalties after the July 15 deadline.”
In the last few months, the IRS Criminal Investigation Division (CI) has continued to see a big increase in a variety of Economic Impact Payment scams and other financial schemes. CI is working with its law enforcement partners to put a stop to these schemes and bring criminals to justice.
Taxpayers can report COVID-19 scams to the National Center for Disaster Fraud. Taxpayers can also report fraud or theft of their Economic Impact Payments to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). Phishing e-mails that appear to be from the IRS should be forwarded to phishing@irs.gov.
For the most up-to-date information about the tax filing deadline and IRS impersonation scams, taxpayers can visit IRS.gov.