Tax filing season officially begins this month. Did you know tax due dates for certain returns have been changed?
Why are the dates changing? One reason is to bring due dates into a more logical order. For example, in prior years, if you were a partner in a partnership, you may have had to extend your personal tax return because you received the information statement from the partnership (Schedule K-1) at the last minute. That was because the due date for partnership returns has been four and a half months after the partnership’s year-end. For calendar-year partnerships, the date was April 15 – the same date you have to file your personal tax return.
What’s changed. Partnerships and C corporations are swapping due dates. Beginning this year, when you file your 2016 federal return, the filing date for partnerships is March 15. The due date for a calendar-year 2016 C corporation is now April 15.
The Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report (FBAR) is due April 15 instead of June 30. Forms W-2 and Forms 1099-Misc with non-employee compensation reported in Box 7 must be sent to recipients and submitted to the Social Security Administration and the IRS by January 31. The new due date for these forms apply to both paper and electronic filing.
Some extended due dates are changing too. Partnerships will now have a five-month extension until September 15. The Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report can be extended until October 15.
What hasn’t changed. Due dates for your individual federal income tax return, S corporations, trusts, estates, nonprofit organizations, and employee benefit plans will generally remain the same.
Missing a due date and filing a tax return late will trigger penalties, and you’ll lose the opportunity to extend the time to file. Please contact us for more details.