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Tax Day Is Not The Same-For Many Reasons

Tax forms photo
Pixabay.com

It’s another case of the “new normal”. Tomorrow is April 15th.  Generally known as “tax-day”. However, the coronavirus pandemic has prompted a three-month extension.   Not only was tax-day extended, but many accounting firms had to find new ways to conduct business and navigate this tax season, due to social distancing.

“A big difference from previous years.”

Phil Mitchell is a CPA and President of Kroon & Mitchell accounting firm.  He says this tax season is best described as “non-traditional”.   As a tax expert, Mitchell and his firm have long standing relationships with many of their clients; clients that this year, they had to keep at a distance.

“We have a lot of clients that would come in for meetings and right we can’t do that so a lot of things were done by phone, mail, email and it’s just changing the process of what normally happens every year.”

The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service announced in mid-March that the federal income tax filing date was automatically extended from April 15th to July 15, 2020.  There are no penalties or interest for filing July 15th and it likely will help businesses hit hard by COVID-19.  Mitchell says it may make sense for some to play the waiting game, depending on one’s circumstance.  Again, there’s no penalty regardless of the amount owed.

“And what we’re really thinking about is the reason you’re delaying that is really to conserve cash for some people. Some are in a tough situation, income and revenue it just grounded to a halt. So we’d rather keep that money and have them keep it one hand if they need it.  So that’s where it’s case by case because everyone is so different.”

On the flip side, the IRS has urged taxpayers to file as soon as possible if owed a refund.  Mitchell agrees.

If you’re owed a refund there’s no reason not to file. If you can and have everything rounded up. Why not get the refund in your hand?”

Jennifer is an award winning broadcast news journalist with more than two decades of professional television news experience including the nation's fifth largest news market. She's worked as both news reporter and news anchor for television and radio in markets from Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo all the way to San Francisco, California.