IRS postpones deadline for gift and GST taxes due to coronavirus

The Internal Revenue Service is postponing the date for filing gift tax and generation-skipping transfer tax returns and making payments until July 15 because of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The Internal Revenue Service is postponing the date for filing gift tax and generation-skipping transfer tax returns and making payments until July 15, 2020, because of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The IRS issued Notice 2020-20 on Friday, extending the relief it provided earlier this month on the tax-filing and payment dates for most other types of tax returns. The IRS also said the associated interest, additions to tax, and penalties for late filing or late payment will be suspended for the gift tax and generation-skipping transfer tax until July 15.

CORONAVIRUS IMPACT: ADDITIONAL COVERAGE

Dr. Cole Barfield has served as Chief Medical Officer of on-demand virtual care provider First Stop Health since 2024. As a board-certified Internal medicine physician, Dr. Barfield spent the first ten years of his career treating patients in inpatient, outpatient, and virtual primary care settings before co-founding and serving as CMO of Wellview Health, which later merged with SentryHealth before being acquired by First Stop Health in late 2023.

Joe Myers is executive vice president of global banking at Diebold Nixdorf.

Suresh Sadhu of Castleton Commodities

Suresh Sadhu is an expert in SAP Master Data Governance and financial data management, helping organizations achieve clean, compliant, and centralized master data across complex ERP systems. He specializes in implementing governance frameworks, automated workflows, and data validation processes that improve accuracy, reduce errors, and enhance operational efficiency. Surresh partners with finance teams and business leaders to enable confident, data-driven decision-making and support sustainable business performance.

The relief is automatic and applies to any amounts due related to these types of returns. There’s no requirement to file for an extension and the three-month period between the original due date of April 15 and the new deadline of July 15 will be disregarded in terms of any interest, penalties or extra taxes for those who fail to file a Form 709 United States Gift and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Return by April 15.

Groups of tax and accounting professionals such as the American Institute of CPAs, the National Society of Accountants and the National Conference of CPA Practitioners have been pressing the IRS to provide additional forms of tax relief beyond the initial relief granted for tax payments from coronavirus victims.

IRS-Building-light
The IRS headquarters building in Washington, D.C.
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