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.
Andrea R. Jaffe, CPA is a senior director of professional services at Avalara. She joined Avalara in 2020 as part of an acquisition. She has been in the licensing space since 2011, assisting clients with license portfolio management, and consulting on operational risk management around mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and other entity reorganizations.
Alex Dontoh is a professor of accounting at the Stern School of Business of New York University, and director of its Master of Science in Accounting program. He holds a Ph.D from New York University, an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley and a BSc in business administration from the University of Ghana.
Chris Danler is vice president of the Central Region at staffing and recruiting firm Aston Carter.
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.
