COVID-19 tax news and resources
The IRS issued guidance telling lenders they should not file Form 1099-C, Cancellation of Debt, or furnish a payee statement to the borrower when a Paycheck Protection Program loan is forgiven.
Some practitioners who attempted to file returns on Sept. 15 ran into technical difficulties that prevented them from e-filing returns by the midnight deadline. The AICPA is talking to the IRS about relief for the problem.
Tax practitioners have expressed concerns that they will not be able to meet looming Sept. 15 tax filing deadlines for a variety of reasons related to the global pandemic.
The IRS added 6 forms to its list temporarily permitting electronic signatures.
The IRS said that COVID-19 testing and diagnostics are not minimum essential coverage under a government-sponsored program and therefore do not disqualify taxpayers from taking the Sec. 36B premium tax credit or Medicaid.
The IRS identified a dozen forms for which is will accept e-signatures for the rest of the year. The forms covered include Form 8879, IRS e-file Signature Authorization, used for e-filing individual income tax returns.
The IRS issued guidance on the payroll tax deferral ordered by President Donald Trump on Aug. 8. The notice requires employers to withhold deferred taxes during the period from Jan. 1 to April 30, 2021.
The IRS provided information and tools that tax practitioners can use to inform individuals who are eligible to receive economic impact payments but did not receive one automatically.
The IRS has stopped sending balance-due notices to taxpayers as it works to process its backlog of unopened mail. It is also working to correct certain erroneous penalties for some employers who reduced their payroll tax deposits to claim COVID-19 relief-related credits.
As the IRS works through its backlog of correspondence, it has posted information about checks it hasn’t cashed yet and notices that went out with incorrect dates.
