IRS Grants Additional Extension to Residents of Five Louisiana Parishes
Taylor Porter Estate Planning and Tax Practice
John McDermott, Rebecca Hinton, Justin Mannino, Will Patrick
IRS and Louisiana Department of Revenue Announce Extension to August 16, 2021, to File and Pay 2020 Tax Returns for Individuals and Businesses in Certain Parishes
Businesses and individuals in the parishes of East Baton Rouge, Ascension, Iberville, Calcasieu, and Lafayette rushing to file and pay their taxes for 2020 can breathe easy – for now. The IRS and the Louisiana Department of Revenue extended the deadline to file tax returns and to make tax payments from June 15, 2021, to August 16, 2021.[1] The IRS announcement can be viewed here, and the related Louisiana Department of Revenue announcement can be found here.
The IRS already extended the deadline for tax returns and payments twice this year. The first extension extended the filing date from April 15, 2021 to May 17, 2021. This extension was due to the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and applied to all U.S. taxpayers.[2] The second extension was in light of the winter storms occurring from February 11 to February 19, 2021.[3] The second extension extended the filing date from May 17, 2021 to June 15, 2021.
This latest extension is due to the severe storms and flooding beginning May 17, 2021 in the parishes listed above. The extension includes the following returns and payments:
Federal
- Business returns.
- Individual returns.
- Individual estimated tax payments that would have been due June 15.
- Employment and excise returns (however, employment and excise tax deposits are not extended).
- Form 5500-series returns.
State
- Individual, corporation, franchise, fiduciary, and partnership income.
- Withholding tax returns and payments due on or after May 17, 2021 and on or before May 30, 2021 are extended to June 30, 2021.
- Sales, severance, and excise tax returns and payments.
Although the language of the announcement is not altogether clear, the federal extension appears to apply only to the second individual estimated tax payment. The first individual estimated tax payment seems to remain due on June 15, 2021.
The first estimated tax payment was originally due on April 15, 2021, but the IRS extended the deadline to May 17 and then June 15 as outlined above. The latest announcement from the IRS indicates that the first estimated tax payment has not been extended any further.
Considering that the IRS extended original and extended due dates for other taxes and returns, but only the original due date for estimated income taxes, it is safest to conclude that the announcement did not further extend payment of the first quarter estimated tax payment. Absent additional clarification from the IRS, taxpayers should proceed to make their first estimated income tax payment on June 15, 2021 to avoid potential penalties.
FOOTNOTES
- [1]Internal Revenue Service, IRS announces tax relief for victims of severe storms and flooding in Louisiana (6/10/2021).
- [2]Internal Revenue Service, Tax Day for individuals extended to May 17: Treasury, IRS extend filing and payment deadline (3/17/2021).
- [3]Internal Revenue Service, IRS announces tax relief for Louisiana severe winter storm victims (3/10/2021).
If you have any questions concerning this latest tax news, or any other tax questions affecting your business, please contact any members on the Taylor Porter estate planning and tax practice team.
About William H. Patrick, IV: William “Will” H. Patrick, IV is an Associate at Taylor Porter practicing in various areas of commercial litigation. Will earned his J.D., cum laude, in 2019 from Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center. He served as a senior editor of the board of the LSU Journal of Energy Law & Resources, and he was a junior graduate editor of the Journal of Civil Law Studies.