Hurricane Ian victims in Florida qualify for tax relief

The IRS just announced that Hurricane Ian victims throughout Florida now have until Feb. 15, 2023, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.

The IRS is offering relief to any area designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This means that individuals and households that reside or have a business anywhere in the state of Florida qualify for tax relief. The current list of eligible localities is always available on the disaster relief page on IRS.gov.

The tax relief postpones various tax filing and payment deadlines that occurred starting on Sept. 23, 2022. As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until Feb. 15, 2023, to file returns and pay any taxes that were originally due during this period.

This means individuals who had a valid extension to file their 2021 return due to run out on Oct. 17, 2022, will now have until Feb. 15, 2023, to file. The IRS noted, however, that because tax payments related to these 2021 returns were due on April 18, 2022, those payments are not eligible for this relief.

The Feb. 15, 2023, deadline also applies to quarterly estimated income tax payments due on Jan. 17, 2023, and the quarterly payroll and excise tax returns normally due on Oct. 31, 2022, and Jan. 31, 2023. Businesses with an original or extended due date also have the additional time including, among others, calendar-year corporations whose 2021 extensions run out on Oct. 17, 2022. Similarly, tax-exempt organizations also have the additional time, including for 2021 calendar-year returns with extensions due to run out on Nov. 15, 2022.

In addition, penalties on payroll and excise tax deposits due on or after Sept. 23, 2022, and before Oct. 10, 2022, will be abated as long as the deposits are made by Oct. 10, 2022.