I am filing my 2024 taxes now (completed the return, paying ASAP, waiting until February to eFile).
My 2023 and 2022 taxes were filed & paid on time.
My 2021 taxes were filed & paid late (in 2023) but I paid all the penalties in full.
Would I quality for a First Time Abatement on my 2024 taxes? Some sources imply that I would be considered in good standing for my 2021 year despite being late since it is now filed and paid in full. Does anyone have experience with this kind of situation? Is the IRS somewhat flexible with this?
Do I quality for First Time Abatement?
byu/idajkfjkdjafkjdkfj intax
Posted by idajkfjkdjafkjdkfj
4 Comments
You can try asking, but my reading says you cannot have been assessed a penalty in the prior three years.
History of good tax compliance
You are considered having a good tax compliance history if you:
Filed the same return type, if required, for the past 3 tax years before the tax year you received the penalty.
Didn’t receive any penalties during the prior 3 years, or any penalty was removed for an acceptable reason other than First Time Abate
https://www.irs.gov/payments/administrative-penalty-relief
> My 2021 taxes were filed & paid late (in 2023) but I paid all the penalties in full.
> Would I quality for a First Time Abatement on my 2024 taxes?
No.
The IRS website actually has a tax compliance letter now if you log in. Based on your history, no it will say you had compliance issues.
> Would I quality for a First Time Abatement on my 2024 taxes?
No, because you filed and/or paid late for one of the prior three years.
> Some sources imply that I would be considered in good standing for my 2021 year despite being late since it is now filed and paid in full.
You are in good standing going forward, but you do not qualify for FTA. Those are two different things.
> Is the IRS somewhat flexible with this?
Not in my experience. You *can* try asking anyway, of course. If you have a particular reason that you’re late on 2024, you also can ask for them to consider penalty abatement for cause. Doesn’t cost you anything but time to ask. I’d suggest paying the full amount and then requesting abatement for a refund if approved, since there’s no guarantee you’ll get the abatement.