IRS is not honoring the LA County Fire Disaster and charging penalties – fill out form 843

I live in LA County and I filed and paid my taxes by the extension date October 15th. Yet myself and my family members have all received IRS notices for late filings and penalties owed.

I called the IRS at 833-678-7020 (the number on the letter), and after holding for 2 hours finally spoke to someone who said there was nothing they could do. They did not know why the system was not registering the natural disaster. They said this happens often with natural disasters and this is happening to many people in LA county.

Their advice was the following:

• File form 843 (found on the IRS website) & quote the fire disaster declarations (IRS website or FEMA website). You'll need one form for every tax record (i.e. couples filing separately).
• Mail it in via certified mail so you know the IRS has received it (multiple forms can be sent in the same envelope ie. family members)
• Wait 90-120 days for a response – possibly longer due to the current government shutdown
• You’ll receive a letter that says "We’ll need more time to respond to your inquiry."
• Eventually you'll receive a letter saying "We have made a decision on your abatement." This could take up to 9 months or longer!
• Do NOT ignore the continued mailings coming in from the IRS that will show increasing penalties and interest charges. But do not pay them either because getting reimbursed is a whole other issue.
• After 3-4 months call: 800-829-7650 – collections dept. Ask if they can verify if the request for your abatement has been received and if they can do a collection hold. 

She said many of the IRS numbers are not working due to the government shutdown, including the natural disaster numbers for the tax relief.

It really is a shame that victims of natural disasters are having to spend their time and energy fighting the government. We're under enough stress. PEOPLE NEED HELP.

I hope this helps others.