Economic Impact Payments on their way, visit IRS.gov instead of calling

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service today urged people to visit IRS.gov for the most current information on the second round of Economic Impact Payments rather than calling the agency or their financial institutions or tax software providers. IRS phone assistors do not have additional information beyond what’s available on IRS.gov.

The IRS and the Treasury Department began issuing a second round of Economic Impact Payments, often referred to as stimulus payments, last week. 

The direct deposit payments may take several days to post to individual accounts. Some Americans may have seen the direct deposit payments as pending or as provisional payments in their accounts before the scheduled payment date of Jan. 4, 2021, which is the official date funds are available.

Paper checks also began going out and will continue to be sent through January. Some people will be mailed debit cards in January, and the IRS urges people to carefully check their mail. Mailed payments will require more processing and mailing time. Those who reside abroad will have longer wait times for checks as disruptions to air travel and mail delivery in some countries will slow delivery.

The IRS emphasizes that there is no action required by eligible individuals to receive this second payment. The payments are automatic, and people should not contact their financial institutions or the IRS with payment timing questions.

Eligibility
Generally, U.S. citizens and resident aliens who are not eligible to be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s income tax return are eligible for this second payment. Eligible individuals will automatically receive an Economic Impact Payment of up to $600 for individuals or $1,200 for married couples and up to $600 for each qualifying child. Most people who have an adjusted gross income for 2019 of up to $75,000 for individuals and up to $150,000 for married couples filing joint returns and surviving spouses, will receive the full amount of the second payment. For filers with income above those amounts, the payment amount is reduced.

Checking the status of a payment
Starting today, people can check the status of both their first and second payments by using the Get My Payment tool, available in English and Spanish only on IRS.gov.

Payment not received or less than expected? Claim on 2020 tax return
Payments started going out last week and will continue through mid-January. Direct deposit payments are being made first to those that have valid routing and account information on file for direct deposit purposes. Because of the speed at which IRS issued this second round of payments, some payments may have been sent to an account that may be closed or no longer active. By law, the financial institution must return the payment to the IRS, they cannot hold and issue the payment to an individual when the account is no longer active. While the IRS is exploring options to correct these payments, if you have not received your full payment by the time you file your 2020 tax return, you may claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your tax return.

The credit is figured like the Economic Impact Payment, except that the credit eligibility and the credit amount are based on the 2020 tax year information, including income.

For people who received a partial Economic Impact Payment, they can take the Recovery Rebate Credit for any remaining amount they’re eligible for by completing line 30 of the 2020 Form 1040 or 1040-SR.

Changing bank account or mailing information
The IRS cannot change payment information, including bank account or mailing information. If an eligible taxpayer does not get a payment or it is less than expected, it may be claimed on the 2020 tax return as the Recovery Rebate Credit. Remember, Economic Impact Payments are an advance payment of what will be called the Recovery Rebate Credit on the 2020 Form 1040 or Form 1040-SR.

More information
For more information about Economic Impact Payments and the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit, visit IRS.gov/eip. Starting next week, people can check the status of their payment at IRS.gov/GetMyPayment. For other COVID-19-related tax relief, visit IRS.gov/Coronavirus.

From SPEC Public Affairs:

Background: We recently became aware that some SPEC partners received emails claiming to be from Frank Nolden. The emails reportedly include a zip attachment and state: “Please see attached for your scanned document. Archive Pass 4937”

Please note that these emails are fraudulent. They were not sent by Frank.

Action:  If you receive this or similar emails, you should not open the attachment. As always, IRS employees and partners should carefully verify that emails are sent by legitimate sources (for example, senders with an actual @irs.gov email address) before opening any attachments or clicking on any links.

We will be rolling out electronic filing for the 1040X over the next several weeks.  We anticipate enabling the ability in Pro Online by the end of September.   We will post updates as well roll this out across our product lines.

Now available: IRS Form 1040-X electronic filing   Major IRS milestone helps taxpayers correct tax returns with fewer errors, speeds processing

WASHINGTON — Marking a major milestone in tax administration, the Internal Revenue Service announced today that taxpayers can now submit Form 1040-X electronically with commercial tax-filing software.

As IRS e-filing has grown during the past 30 years, the 1040-X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, has been one of the last major individual tax forms that needed to be paper filed. Today’s announcement follows years of effort by the IRS, and the enhancement allows taxpayers to quickly electronically correct previously filed tax returns while minimizing errors.

“The ability to file the Form 1040-X electronically has been an important long-term goal of the IRS e-file initiative for many years,” said Sunita Lough, IRS Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement. “Given the details needed on the form, there have been numerous challenges to add this form to the e-file family. Our IT and business operation teams worked hard with the nation’s tax industry to make this change possible. This is another success for IRS modernization efforts. The addition helps taxpayers have a quicker, easier way to file amended returns, and it streamlines work for the IRS and the entire tax community.”

Making the 1040-X an electronically filed form has been a goal for the tax software and tax professional industry for years. It’s been a continuing recommendation from the Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council (IRSAC) and Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC).

VITA/TCE partners and volunteers,

Congratulations on completing another filing season. This filing season was longer than we expected and was filled with unexpected challenges. But I’m very impressed with the ways you overcame those challenges.

Your VITA and TCE sites started out very strong this filing season. Unfortunately, everything changed in March as sites began to close. We appreciate the care you took in deciding what was best for the health of your volunteers and the taxpayers you serve. We also thank you for keeping in touch with your IRS-SPEC contacts so that we could be sure that IRS.gov accurately showed which sites were open.

I’m happy to report that VITA/TCE sites still submitted nearly 2.4 million returns. That’s 2.4 million individuals and families who received free, quality tax return preparation. And we know that these were “quality” tax returns because the reviews performed by our employees showed an accuracy rate was 94%.

I especially want to thank those of you who used alternative filing methods to continue helping taxpayers. Whether you offered Facilitated Self Assistance, Virtual VITA, a safe drop-off method or some combination, your willingness to try new approaches shows just how dedicated you are to serving your communities.

Finally, I’d also like to thank you for helping us spread the word about Economic Impact Payments. Many of you reached people who don’t normally file a tax return, including people experiencing homelessness. Through this outreach, you were able to positively impact the lives of many Americans.

As we set our sights on next filing season, we look forward to working with you to expand our cause to even more people. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.

Thanks again for your efforts this filing season.

Frank Nolden

Director, Stakeholder Partnerships,

Education and Communication (SPEC)

The 2020 IRS Nationwide Tax Forums will be held virtually beginning this July.

The Forums will begin on July 21 and continue through August 20. Webinars will be live streamed each Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Registered attendees can participate in all live webinars and earn up to 30 continuing education credits at one price.

The agenda includes tax law and publication updates, as well as multiple sessions on qualified business income, exam and enforcement priorities, due diligence, cybersecurity and more. Presentations will be made by both IRS experts and partner associations. This year several seminars will be available in Spanish.

Additional details, including course titles, dates and times, will be available in early June.

Registration and fees
Tax pros who register by June 15 at 5 p.m. ET qualify for an early bird rate of $240 per person. The price will then go up to $289. 

Those who registered for the live forums can transfer their registration to the virtual format at no additional cost. Refunds are available for those who choose to cancel.

Visit the IRS Tax Forum website for details about registration, transfers and cancelations.

Discounts for national association members
If they register by June 15, members of partner associations listed below qualify for an additional $10 off the early bird rate. These include: 

   •  American Bar Association, Section of Taxation
•  American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
•  National Association of Enrolled Agents
•  National Association of Tax Professionals
•  National Society of Accountants
•  National Society of Tax Professionals
•  Low Income Taxpayer Clinics
•  Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program

Participating members should contact their association directly for more information.

Many of you have received and read the following IRS Newswire regarding the announcement about electronically filing the 1040X and have already reached out to VITA/TCE support wanting to know when this will be available and how will it work.  As of today (May 29, 2020), the IRS has not released the updated schema to software developers to begin the planning stages of how and when the 1040X will be supported electronically.  As the IRS releases this information to the industry and releases a timeline of when the MeF system will be updated to receive the 1040X electronically, we will keep our volunteers informed via the blog.

WASHINGTON- The Internal Revenue Service  announced today that later this summer taxpayers will for the first time be able to file their Form 1040-X, Amended U.S Individual Income Tax Return, electronically using available tax software products.

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.”

About 3 million Forms 1040-X are filed by taxpayers each year.

The new electronic filing option will provide the IRS with more complete and accurate data in an easily readable format to enable customer service representatives to answer taxpayers’ questions. Taxpayers can still use the “Where’s My Amended Return?” online tool to check the status of their electronically-filed 1040-X.

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.

“Adding amended returns to the electronic family also complements our partnership with the tax software industry, which continues to work with us to provide better ways to help taxpayers,” said Ken Corbin, Commissioner of the IRS Wage and Investment division.  

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced the 2020 IRS Nationwide Tax Forums will be held virtually in 2020 with a series of live-streamed webinars beginning this July.

“Given restrictions on large gatherings and difficulties with travel, we’ve made the decision to present the IRS Nationwide Tax Forums in a virtual format this year,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said. “While we’re unable to meet in person, tax professionals will still be able to choose from a wide variety of virtual seminars on tax law.Many will be able to fully satisfy their annual continuing education requirements by registering and attending.”

Held each summer for the past 30 years, the IRS Nationwide Tax Forums are the IRS’s marquee outreach event to the tax professional community. The forums were scheduled to take place in six cities around the country this summer. Those in-person events are canceled.

However, the change to a virtual format allows experts from the IRS and its association partners to still educate and update the tax professional community on tax law, cybesecurity, ethics and other topics.

Seminar dates and agenda
The 2020 Nationwide Tax Forums will begin on July 21 and continue through Aug. 20 with live-streamed webinars broadcast on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Registration enables attendees to participate in all of the live webinars and earn up to 30 Continuing Education Credits at one price.

As in previous years, the Nationwide Tax Forums agenda will feature a plenary session with tax law and publications update, as well as multiple sessions on high-interest topics such as qualified business income, exam and enforcement priorities, due diligence, cybersecurity and more. Presentations are made by both IRS experts and partner associations.

This year several seminars, including the plenary session, will be provided in Spanish.

Further details, including course titles, dates and times, will be available beginning in early June.

2020 registration and fees
Tax professionals who register by June 15 at 5 p.m. ET qualify for an Early Bird rate of $240 per person. The standard rate, starting June 16, will be $289.

Initial registration for the in-person 2020 forums began in March. Those who have already registered may transfer their registration to the virtual format at no additional cost. Refunds are available for those who choose not to participate.

Registration information, as well as information on transfers and cancelations, is available at www.IRSTaxForum.com.

Discounts for national association members
Members of partner associations listed below qualify for a discount of $10 off the Early Bird rate, but only if they register by June 15. Participating association members should contact their association directly for more information:

• American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Taxation
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)
• National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA)
• National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP)
• National Society of Accountants (NSA)
• National Society of Tax Professionals (NSTP)
• Low Income Taxpayer Clinics (LITC)
• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA)

IRS.gov has answers to many questions people may have about their Economic Impact Payment. Here are answers to some of the top questions people are asking about these payments. 

Is this payment considered taxable income?

No, the payment is not income and taxpayers will not owe tax on it. The payment will not reduce a taxpayer’s refund or increase the amount they owe when they file their 2020 tax return next year. A payment also will not affect income for purposes of determining eligibility for federal government assistance or benefit programs.

Can people who receive a Form SSA-1099 or RRB-1099 use Get My Payment to check their payment status?

Yes, they will be able to use Get My Payment to check the status of their payment after verifying their identity by answering the required security questions.

If someone’s bank account information has changed since they filed their last tax return, can they update it using Get My Payment?

To help protect against potential fraud, the tool also does not allow people to change direct deposit bank account information already on file with the IRS.

If the IRS issues a direct deposit based on the account information that the taxpayer provided on their tax return and the bank information is now invalid or the account has been closed, the bank will reject the deposit. The agency will then mail payment as soon as possible to the address they have on file. Get My Payment will be updated to reflect the date a payment will be mailed. It will take up to 14 days to receive the payment, standard mailing time.