As many advisers have discovered due to clients (especially trusts) receiving notices regarding payments supposedly due on tax returns where payments had been mailed in when the return was filed at July 15, the IRS is behind in processing items mailed to the agency and that includes certain tax payments.  Due to this delay, the IRS has updated guidance on its website to provide relief for taxpayers who end up with a check being dishonored by their bank when the IRS finally gets around to processing that July 15 check.[1]

The IRS provides the following additional data on the page related to payments sent to the agency:

Pending Check Payments and Payment Notices: If a taxpayer mailed a check (either with or without a tax return), it may still be unopened in the backlog of mail the IRS is processing due to COVID-19. Any payments will be posted as the date we received them rather than the date the agency processed them. To avoid penalties and interest, taxpayers should not cancel their checks and should ensure funds continue to be available so the IRS can process them.

To provide fair and equitable treatment, the IRS is providing relief from bad check penalties for dishonored checks the agency received between March 1 and July 15 due to delays in this IRS processing. However, interest and penalties may still apply.

Due to high call volumes, the IRS suggests waiting to contact the agency about any unprocessed paper payments still pending. See www.irs.gov/payments for options to make payments other than by mail.[2]

[1] “IRS Operations During COVID-19: Mission-critical functions continue,” IRS Website, August 13, 2020, https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-operations-during-covid-19-mission-critical-functions-continue (retrieved August 15, 2020)

[2] “IRS Operations During COVID-19: Mission-critical functions continue,” IRS Website, August 13, 2020