IRS sets end date for faxing refund claim forms amid coronavirus

The Internal Revenue Service is giving taxpayers until the end of the year before it stops its temporary procedures for faxing in Forms 1045 and 1139 for claiming tentative tax refunds.

The Internal Revenue Service is giving taxpayers until the end of the year before it stops its temporary procedures for faxing in Forms 1045 and 1139 for claiming tentative tax refunds, instead of mailing them, which it has allowed as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In April, the IRS began allowing taxpayers to file both forms by fax while many IRS employees worked remotely and were unable to process the mail.

CORONAVIRUS IMPACT: ADDITIONAL COVERAGE

Amanda Riley joined HealthEquity more than 12 years ago and has worked in member services, operations, sales and now focuses on enterprise relationships. The majority of her work has been focused on helping to shape and evolve benefits programs at organizations of all sizes. Amanda lives in Washington state and can be found on LinkedIn.

Aaron Cirksena founder CEO of MDRN Capital

Aaron Cirksena, founder and CEO of MDRN Capital, has devoted his entire career to financial planning, distribution planning and managing client money.

He worked with multiple $1 billion teams at Morgan Stanley and independent firms, and eventually created his own independent services firm in MDRN Capital. As a fully digital firm, MDRN prioritizes efficiency and convenience, providing remote consultations and digital account opening.

Matteo Carbone

Founder and Director of the IoT Insurance Observatory, and Global Ambassador of the Italian InsurTech Association.

Internationally recognized as an insurance industry strategist and a world-renowned authority on InsurTech, he has worked in 20 different international insurance markets. Co-author of a book, 18 papers and more than 100 thought-leadership articles on insurance innovation. He has been invited to speak at more than 200 events across the world.

Accomplished business leader who co-founded Archimede, a SPAC that raised €47M and acquired the Italian insurance carrier Net Insurance in 2018. As board member and chairperson of the innovation advisory board, played a key role in the success of the listed combined entity. This journey resulted in Poste Italiane's acquisition of Net Insurance in May 2023, generating a 120% return for SPAC investors.

Before creating Observatory and co-founding Archimede, he spent 11 years in Bain & Company. He received his Business Administration degree from Bocconi University, also executive program certificates in IoT and data monetization from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

An individual, estate or trust can file Form 1045, Application for Tentative Refund, to apply for a quick tax refund resulting from the carryback of a net operating loss, the carryback of an unused general business credit, the carryback of a net section 1256 contracts loss, or an overpayment of tax due to a claim of right adjustment under section 1341(b)(1) of the Tax Code.

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IRS headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Corporations (other than S corps) can file Form 1139, Corporation Application for Tentative Refund, to apply for a quick refund of taxes from the carryback of a net operating loss (or a loss from operations of a life insurance company), the carryback of a net capital loss, the carryback of an unused general business credit, or an overpayment of tax from a claim of right adjustment under section 1341(b)(1).

The CARES Act, which Congress passed in March in response to the coronavirus crisis, included some provisions allowing companies to carryback their net operating losses for five years and file refund claims, giving them a quick capital infusion in the midst of the pandemic. Taxpayers with a net operating loss arising in a tax year starting in 2018, 2019 or 2020 can carry that loss back to each of the five preceding years unless the taxpayer elects to waive or reduce the carryback. The law also allows a carryback for a two-year period of NOLs for a tax year that began in 2017 and ended during 2018.

Another section of the CARES Act modifies the credit for prior-year minimum tax liability of corporations, including to accelerate the recovery of remaining minimum tax credits of a corporation for its 2019 taxable year from its 2021 taxable year and to allow a corporation to elect instead to recover 100 percent of any of its remaining minimum tax credits in its 2018 taxable year. In April, the IRS began allowing taxpayers on a temporary basis to fax in Forms 1045 and 1139 to expedite the tax refund process.

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However, on Wednesday, the IRS added an entry to its Frequently Asked Questions page describing the temporary procedures to say the procedure will end on Dec. 31, 2020. After midnight on New Year’s Eve, the fax numbers will no longer be operational. The IRS noted that the end of the faxing process is independent of any filing due dates. For example, the last day to file Form 1139 electing to take the 100 percent refundable minimum tax credit in 2018, is Dec. 30, 2020.

“Additionally, if you file one application for a tentative refund and claim both the NOL carryback and the minimum tax credit at the same time, you must file the application by the earliest applicable deadline,” the IRS noted.