Victims of severe storms and tornadoes that began on Feb. 14 in parts of Indiana may qualify for federal tax relief.
Following the recent disaster declaration for individual assistance issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the IRS said affected taxpayers in certain Indiana counties will receive
People who reside or have a business in the counties of Carroll, Clark, Dearborn, Elkhart, Floyd, Fulton, Harrison, Jasper, Jefferson, Kosciusko, Lake, LaPorte, Marshall, Ohio, Porter, Pulaski, Spencer, Starke, St. Joseph, Switzerland, Vanderburgh and White may qualify for tax relief.
The declaration permits the IRS to postpone certain deadlines for taxpayers living or with a business in the disaster area.
For instance, certain deadlines falling on or after February 14 and before June 29 are granted additional time to file through June 29. This includes the April 18 deadline for filing 2017 individual returns and the April 18 and June 15 deadlines for quarterly estimated tax payments. Penalties on employment and excise tax deposits due on or after February 14 and before March 1 of this year will be abated as long as the deposits were made by March 1.
If an affected taxpayer receives a late filing or late payment penalty notice from the IRS that has an original or extended filing, payment or deposit due date that falls within the postponement period, the taxpayer should call the telephone number on the notice to have the IRS abate the penalty.
The IRS automatically identifies taxpayers in the covered disaster area and applies automatic filing and payment relief. Affected taxpayers who reside or have a business outside the covered disaster area must call the IRS disaster hotline at (866) 562-5227 to request relief.
