Millions of Taxpayers Could be Eligible for Refunds of COVID-era Late Fees

A federal court issued a ruling that could affect tens of millions of taxpayers: Nobody should have been required to file their taxes on time for a stretch from 2020 to 2023, the judge declared, because timely tax collecting should have been suspended during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

If the ruling withstands the government's appeals, the IRS could owe refunds to anyone who was charged a late fee or penalty for failing to pay their taxes on time in those years. Judge Molly Silfen's position is that people still owed taxes during the pandemic but shouldn't have been required to pay them until the federally declared emergency ended in mid-2023.

U.S. law allows people not to pay their taxes on time during federally declared disasters. If your town is struck by a hurricane or wildfire, you do not have to file your tax return until at least 60 days after the disaster ends. But most disasters last for days, not years. And most affect designated communities, not the entire country. The three-year-long federal emergency response to the pandemic was a unique situation.

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