When the IRS changed the filing date for 2020 tax returns (from April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021), it also adjusted some other important deadlines. It’s important to note that these deadlines have not been adjusted on the IRS website if you search by topic. Look instead at IRS Notice 2021-21 (tinyurl.com/3fye6bx9).

You have until May 17, 2021, to make 2020 contributions to your individual retirement accounts (IRAs and Roth IRAs), Coverdell education savings accounts (Coverdell ESAs), health savings accounts (HSAs) and Archer Medical Savings Accounts (Archer MSAs).

Also postponed to May 17 is the reporting of and paying the 10% additional tax on “amounts includible in gross income from 2020 distributions from IRAs.”

The deadline to provide taxpayers Form 5498, an important document related to IRAs and other retirement plans (and something that we discussed in January in relation to required minimum distribution rollovers), has been moved from May 31, 2021, to June 30, 2021. Notice 2021-21 states that penalties for those IRA trustees or issuers who fail to file the forms “will begin to accrue on July 1, 2021.”

Another deadline that moved from April 15 relates to tax preparers, particularly those who are interested in participating in the Annual Filing Season Program (AFSP) for the 2021 calendar year. They now have until May 17 to file an application. The AFSP is described by the IRS as a “voluntary program designed to encourage non-credentialed tax return preparers to participate in continuing education (CE) courses.” More information on the program can be found at tinyurl.com/yd35ckn9.

If you want to claim a refund related to your 2017 federal income tax return, the three-year window is also extended to May 17, 2021. (Under the Internal Revenue Code, there is a three-year window to claim a refund. See tinyurl.com/esxm6w.) For 2017 refunds, you have until May 17, 2021, to mail in your tax return -- be sure to properly address the mailing. If you miss this deadline, no refund. Those moneys become the property of the U.S. Treasury.

Finally, for those who are required to file IRS Form 1040-NR for 2020, which relates to foreign trusts and estates that have federal income tax filing or payment obligations, the deadline is now May 17, 2021.

What did not get postponed? The April 15, 2021, deadline for estimated tax payments. You might not think about the fact that throughout the year, taxes must be paid as taxpayers receive income. For most people, that occurs when their taxes are automatically withheld from their paychecks and are sent to the IRS by their employer. Of course, there are others who make quarterly estimated tax payments to the IRS because their income is not subject to income tax withholding. This includes self-employment, interest, dividend, alimony and rental income.

You can find more IRS updates related to Coronavirus Tax Relief at tinyurl.com/xytn939e.

On another note, the Treasury Department and the IRS announced on March 30 that they anticipated Economic Impact Payments would begin to be issued to Social Security recipients and other federal beneficiaries who do not normally file a tax return, with the majority of the stimulus payments projected to be sent electronically and received on April 7.

According to the announcement, the update applied to “Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Railroad Retirement Board beneficiaries who did not file a 2019 or 2020 tax return or did not use the Non-Filers tool.” The announcement went on to note that the IRS “continues to review data received for Veterans Affairs (VA) benefit recipients and expects to determine a payment date and provide more details soon.”

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Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

Economic impact payments (EIP) are now reaching 127 million individuals. This is the third EIP that was just authorized (March 11) by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. There are some changes from the first two EIPs.

To receive a full ($1,400) or partial EIP, you cannot make more than $80,000 adjusted gross income (AGI) -- $160,000 if married filing jointly. The first and second EIPs were less strict (EIP1: $99,000 individual/$198,000 married filing jointly; EIP2: $87,000 individual/$174,000 married filing jointly, with both EIPs having possible adjustments to the amounts based on qualifying children).

Your third economic impact payment (EIP3) may arrive by direct deposit to your bank account or by mail. I heard from a reader who checked her bank account on March 24 to find a $1,400 deposit. She then checked the IRS tool “Get My Payment” at tinyurl.com/um7wjjk9, which confirmed the deposit. The tool does not report EIP1 and EIP2 payments.

If the IRS is mailing your EIP3 to you, you may get a check or a prepaid debit card (Economic Impact Payment Card, or EIP Card).

According to the IRS, paper checks will arrive in a white envelope from the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The check will look similar to a tax refund that arrives by mail, but this version will have “Economic Impact Payment” in the memo field.

Checks are easily identified as EIPs. Not so with the EIP Card. The EIP Card will arrive by mail in a white envelope that has a U.S. Department of the Treasury seal. The EIP Card inside will be a Visa debit card with the name MetaBank (the issuing bank) on the back. If you want to see what the check and the card look like, go to tinyurl.com/wprpvx53.

Before you can use the card, you’ll need to activate it. You’ll find instructions in the envelope. After you activate the card, you can check your balance online, by phone (800-240-8100) or through a mobile app (the Money Network Mobile App, found at the App Store or on Google Play). For more information, see EIPcard.com.

If, by chance, you did not receive the first two EIPs, or got less than the full amount, all is not lost. There is a procedure to apply for EIP1 and EIP2 through the 2020 Recovery Rebate Credit (tinyurl.com/wv6euhbj). You will need to know how much you received for EIP1 (see IRS Notice 1444, which was already mailed to you by the IRS) and EIP2 (IRS Notice 1444-B, which you should receive in the mail shortly). You will need this information when you file a 2020 tax return to claim the credit. You can also create an online IRS account to look up EIP1 and EIP2. See tinyurl.com/z88tmkar. It’s worth the effort.

You do not have to take action to receive EIP3. In order for the payment to reach you, the IRS relies on 2019 or 2020 tax returns filed or benefit records, such as Social Security retirement, survivor or disability benefits, Railroad Retirement benefits, Supplemental Security Income or Veterans Affairs benefits. If you don’t fall into these categories, and you did not register for the first EIP using the IRS Non-Filers tool in 2020, you will have to file a 2020 tax return. If you don’t have a Social Security number, but file a tax return with a taxpayer ID number, that will not suffice. The EIP is limited to people with Social Security numbers.

For more details on EIP3, see IRS Fact Sheet 2021-05 (tinyurl.com/46ux98bz).

On another matter, if you are interested in the basics of estate planning, join me for a virtual presentation, “Financial Planning for Retirement III -- Estate Plan.” It will be held on Wednesday, April 7, at 1 p.m. EDT, and is sponsored by the Greenwich (Connecticut) Library. To register, go to tinyurl.com/34t2c6dx or contact Yang Wang, 203-622-7924, ywang@greenwichlibrary.org.

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Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

The IRS has been busy. From a third round of stimulus payments, to a delayed tax filing date, to relief for taxpayers involved in disputes with the federal tax agency -- just to name a few of the things everyone needs to know about.

Stimulus: You may have already received your stimulus check. Ninety million payments have been sent out so far, according to the IRS. More than $242 billion arrived in individual bank accounts through direct deposit or as a check via mail recently, thanks to the American Rescue Plan -- with more stimulus payments arriving in the coming weeks.

If you provided direct deposit information on your 2019 or 2020 tax returns (or if you used the Non-Filers tool on IRS.gov last year), take a look at your checking account for the deposit.

The deposit could add up to a tidy sum. For couples who are eligible, it’s $2,800, plus $1,400 for each dependent.

If you haven’t received your payment yet, you can check the Get My Payment tool (tinyurl.com/um7wjjk9) on the IRS website to find out more details of when the stimulus money might arrive. According to the website, Get My Payment is updated once a day.

To use the tool, you enter your Social Security number, date of birth, street address and ZIP code. Once you hit the “Continue” button, you’ll be given details on your payment. The website explains the various status messages you might see: Payment Status, Payment Status Not Available or Need More Information. More detail on the status messages can be found in the Get My Payment FAQs (tinyurl.com/ncuvxv7d).

For more information about the stimulus payment, read the IRS’ “More details about the third round of Economic Impact Payments” at tinyurl.com/5ptc8pru.

New tax date: In case you missed it, the IRS and the Treasury Department announced on March 17 that the federal income tax filing due date for the 2020 tax year for individuals has been extended from April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021 (tinyurl.com/4vkztt6t). This relief does not apply to estimated tax payments, which are still due on April 15, 2021. Also, the postponement does not apply to state taxes, with the IRS recommending that taxpayers check with their state tax agencies (tinyurl.com/59ap7v2p) for more details.

It is the second year in a row that the federal income tax due date has been extended, with last year’s being moved from April 15 to July 15 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tax Court: Virtual help is available from the IRS for taxpayers involved in Tax Court cases without having to go to trial. The mechanism is Virtual Settlement Day (VSD).

VSDs offer taxpayers a chance to resolve cases. Since last May, the IRS has settled 259 taxpayer cases through VSD. Taxpayers can receive free tax advice from Low Income Taxpayer Clinics, American Bar Association volunteer attorneys or pro bono organizations.

“I strongly encourage all taxpayers who have the ability to participate in a settlement day event to do so because they will understand their own case better while not giving up their day in court if they so choose,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in a statement.

The timing is right. We are in the middle of “National Settlement Month,” and VSD events will be available for taxpayers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. To find out more, go to tinyurl.com/ycd2tn9y.

Julie Jason, JD, LLM, a personal money manager (Jackson, Grant Investment Advisers Inc. of Stamford, Connecticut) and award-winning author, welcomes your questions/comments (readers@juliejason.com). Please visit www.juliejason.com.

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