The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and other tax industry groups are urging the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to extend the quarterly estimated tax payments deadline to the same date as the tax filing deadline.
That call has been heard by 60 members of Congress, who made a similar request in a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig last week.
“Contrary to your claim, we have heard from numerous struggling small businesses in our Congressional Districts that do not follow this practice and will not be able to file on time. Many small and medium sized businesses pay their quarterly estimated taxes based on their returns from the previous year. If these businesses do not file until May 17, 2021, they will not know what their estimated payment liability will be for this filing year,” the letter, spearheaded by U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA), said.
For weeks, the AICPA has been pushing the Treasury and the IRS to extend the estimated payment deadline to May 17th, the same date as the tax filing deadline.
“We are grateful to Representative Smucker and the other 59 members of Congress who signed this letter, advocating on behalf of the small businesses and self-employed within their districts,” AICPA vice president of taxation, Edward Karl, said. “The consequences of the IRS’ decision to exclude estimated payments will have a detrimental impact on millions of taxpayers who file quarterly estimated taxes, many of whom have already suffered tremendously during this pandemic.”
The AICPA represents the CPA profession, with more than 431,000 members in the United States and worldwide.