Forms 1040-X for 2019 Will Be Available for Electronic Filing Later in the Summer of 2020
The IRS announced in a news release[1] that later this summer the agency will begin accepting Form 1040-X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, electronically. However, the agency did not announce a specific date for the availability of this option.
The electronic filing option will initially be limited to amendments of 2019 individual returns, as the news release states:
When the electronic filing option becomes available, only tax year 2019 Forms 1040 and 1040-SR returns can be amended electronically. In general, taxpayers will still have the option to submit a paper version of the Form 1040-X and should follow the instructions for preparing and submitting the paper form. Additional enhancements are planned for the future.[2]
The release states that the IRS processes about 3 million amended individual returns each year.
The IRS had been working on this option for a number of years. The news release provides:
Making the 1040-X an electronically filed form has been a goal of the IRS for a number of years. It’s also been an ongoing request from the nation’s tax professional community and has been a continuing recommendation from the Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council (IRSAC) and Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC).
Currently, taxpayers must mail a completed Form 1040-X to the IRS for processing. The new electronic option allows the IRS to receive amended returns faster while minimizing errors normally associated with manually completing the form.
“This new process is a major milestone for the IRS, and it follows hard work by people across the agency,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. “E-filing has been one of the great success stories of the IRS, and more than 90 percent of taxpayers use it routinely. But the big hurdle that’s been remaining for years is to convert amended returns into this electronic process. Our teams have worked diligently to overcome the unique challenges related to the 1040-X, and we look forward to offering this new service this summer.”[3]