How to Avoid and Reduce IRS Tax Penalties

Tax season can be a stressful time for many individuals and businesses. The fear of making errors on your tax return or missing important deadlines can be overwhelming. Even with the best of intentions, circumstances can sometimes lead to tax penalties. But here's the good news: understanding the types of penalties imposed by the IRS and knowing how to avoid or minimize them can significantly reduce your stress during tax season. In this comprehensive guide, we'll delve into the world of tax penalties, providing insights into their various forms and offering strategies to navigate them successfully.

Understanding Tax Penalties

Tax penalties can seem confusing and complex, but they don't need to be. This guide aims to demystify the world of tax penalties by breaking down the most common types and explaining how they're calculated. The IRS imposes these penalties to encourage timely and accurate tax filing and payment. Whether you're a business owner or an individual taxpayer, being aware of these penalties is essential to avoid unnecessary financial burdens and stress.

Key Insights:

To get us started, let's look at some key insights that will guide us through the rest of the guide:

- If you can't submit your tax return by the due date, you have the option to seek an extension until October 15. This helps you steer clear of the failure-to-file penalty, which amounts to 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or partial month your return is overdue.

- To dodge the failure-to-pay penalty (0.5% of the tax you owe per month), ensure you pay your taxes in full by the tax deadline or set up an IRS installment agreement.

- To avert penalties for underpayment of estimated tax, consider increasing withholding from your paycheck or making quarterly estimated payments.

- To prevent a dishonored check penalty (2% of the check's amount), ensure you have sufficient funds to cover your payment or opt for overdraft protection.

Evasion Strategies

While tax penalties can be intimidating, there are strategies to minimize or even evade them. It's important to understand that mistakes are a part of life, and even with the best intentions, you may find yourself facing IRS tax penalties. Knowing these strategies can help you confidently navigate the complex world of taxes.

Common Tax Penalties

Let's take a closer look at four common tax penalties assessed by the IRS:

Failure to File

This penalty comes into play when your tax return is late. Filing by the due date or extended due date is crucial to avoid it. The failure-to-file penalty amounts to 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or partial month that your return is overdue. However, it caps at 25% (5 months) of your balance. If your return is more than 60 days late, a minimum penalty applies. The minimum penalty is either $435 or 100% of the tax owed, whichever amount is less, for returns due in 2020, 2021, and 2022. The minimum amount increases to $450 for returns due after 1/1/2023. To avoid a failure to file penalty, make sure you file your return by the due date (or extended due date), even if you can't pay the balance due.

You have a little more leeway if you're receiving a refund. In that case, the IRS won't charge a failure to file penalty if you file your tax return late. However, you can lose your refund if you don't file your return within three years of the original due date.

Failure to Pay

Whether you file your tax return on time or request an extension, the IRS requires you to pay the tax due by the April filing deadline. If you don't pay what you owe by that date, the IRS charges a failure to pay penalty. This tax penalty is 0.5% of the tax you owe per month or part of a month, but it also caps at 25% of the tax due. If you set up an IRS installment agreement, the IRS will reduce your failure to pay penalty to 0.25% of the tax you owe while the installment agreement is in effect.

Both the failure to file penalty and the failure to pay penalty are charged for a full month, even if you pay the balance due before the month ends. When both penalties apply to the same month, the failure to file penalty is decreased by the amount of the failure to pay penalty so that the maximum combined failure to file and failure to pay penalty is 5% for any month. To avoid or at least minimize failure to pay penalties, pay your tax in full by the April tax deadline, even if you request an extension. If you owe more than you can afford to pay, pay as much as possible by the deadline, then pay the rest as soon as you can. If you cannot pay the rest that you owe within a few months of the due date, you should look at requesting an installment agreement.

Failure to Pay Proper Estimated Tax

The IRS operates on a "pay as you go" system, meaning you're expected to pay taxes throughout the year as you earn or receive income, rather than sending a lump sum to the IRS at the end of the year. If you owe more than $1,000 when you calculate your taxes, you could be subject to an underpayment of estimated tax penalty. To avoid this penalty, you should make payments throughout the year through tax withholding from your paycheck or estimated quarterly payments, or both.

The IRS calculates this penalty by determining how much you should have paid each quarter and multiplying the difference between what you paid and what you should have paid by the effective interest rate for that period. This means you can have a penalty for one quarter, but not for others. To avoid or minimize estimated tax penalties, adjust your tax withholding from your paycheck or estimate your tax bill and make estimated quarterly payments. Those quarterly estimates are typically due on:

- April 15

- June 15

- September 15

- January 15

However, if one or more of those dates fall on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline gets pushed back to the next business day.

The IRS also offers two "safe harbor" methods for determining whether you are subject to a penalty. If you meet one of these safe harbor amounts, the IRS won't charge an estimated tax penalty, even if you owe more than $1,000 at the end of the year.

The requirements for these safe harbors are:

- Paying 90% of the tax you owe for the current year. Estimate what you'll owe and pay at least 90% of this amount by making timely quarterly estimated tax payments or through paycheck withholding.

- Paying 100% (or 110%) of last year's tax bill. Pay 100% of the tax shown on your prior-year tax return before applying estimated payments, withholding, or refundable tax credits. If your adjusted gross income is more than $150,000 (or $75,000 if you're married and file a separate return from your spouse), the safe harbor is 110% of your prior-year tax.

Dishonored Check

If you write a check to cover your tax bill and don't have enough money in your bank account to cover it, your bank may dishonor or "bounce" the check. The IRS charges a dishonored check penalty of 2% of the check's amount unless it's less than $1,250.

In that case, the penalty is $25 or the amount of the check, whichever is lower. To avoid a dishonored check penalty, make sure you have funds in your account to cover your payment before mailing a check, or consider signing up for overdraft protection with your bank.

How to Get Tax Penalties Removed

In a perfect world, you'd never have to deal with IRS penalties. Fortunately, the IRS is often willing to work with people who make mistakes. This process is known as penalty abatement. Two common reasons the IRS might consider penalty abatement are:

Reasonable Cause

If you didn't file on time or pay the tax you owe due to extenuating circumstances, the IRS might agree to waive your penalties. Examples of reasonable cause might include a house fire, natural disaster, illness, or an immediate family member's death.

First-Time Penalty Abatement

If you're normally on top of your tax filing responsibilities but just missed the filing deadline or payment due date, the IRS may do you a one-time favor. To qualify, you must have filed all of your tax returns, pay your outstanding balance, or set up an installment agreement with the IRS, and have no prior penalties in the past three years.

The Role of Tax Preparation Services

Navigating the world of taxes can be complex, but you don't have to do it alone. Professional tax preparation services like Butler Squared Consulting can help ensure a smooth tax process. With expert guidance and support, you can confidently file your taxes and maximize your refund. Butler Squared Consulting offers multiple options, from filing your own taxes with expert support to a full-service experience. No matter which option you choose, Butler Squared Consulting has your back throughout the tax season.

Taxes can be a daunting aspect of life, and tax penalties are a reality for many individuals and businesses. However, with the right knowledge and strategies, you can minimize or even avoid these penalties. Understanding the various forms of tax penalties, the circumstances that lead to them, and the options for penalty abatement is essential for a successful tax season. Whether you choose to handle your taxes independently or seek professional assistance, Butler Squared Consulting offers a range of services to make the process smooth and stress-free. Don't let tax penalties weigh you down; take control of your tax season and secure your financial future.