IRS operations to process third-party authorizations are now closed. Please do not fax requests for Centralized Authorization File (CAF) numbers until further notice. The Income Verification Express Service also is temporarily on hold. Possible alternative for tax administration purposes: clients can go to Get Transcript Online, create an account to verify their identities and immediately review or print a tax transcript.
Our efforts to protect IRS employees, taxpayers and our stakeholders mean extremely limited services are currently available. The IRS is unable to process paper tax returns, respond to paper correspondence or staff toll-free live service lines. Please use all electronic options available to you on IRS.gov or through your tax software provider.
See IRS urges taxpayers to use electronic options; outlines online assistance
The IRS will be able to issue economic impact payments for those who filed returns with the IRS, including their bank account information, starting next week.
TaxMama’s response to the IRS:
1) A lot of taxpayers are unable to file electronically – for a variety of valid reasons.
I understand why you cannot process paper tax returns – but just WOW!
2) Taxpayers who have not filed tax returns for a year or more and are trying to get back into the system
cannot use the get transcript system – unless the IRS can provide some other way to verify their identity
besides their AGI from a previous year.
3) The extension of time to file 2016 tax returns by July 15, 2020 and still get a refund is generous – but it won’t help people who don’t have their 2016 3rd party data.
(Normally the 2016 filing deadline to get a refund is 3 years after the due date = April 15, 2020.)
This also means that those amended returns made available by the CARES Act for several retroactive tax breaks to 2018, and the Net Operating Loss (NOL) carrybacks are now, effectively not available.
NOLs that could be taken for losses before 12/31/17 could have been filed by July 27, 2020. But if you have to file on paper – well, that’s out. So it only works if you can file Forms 1139 and 1045 electronically.
(Can you?)
Essentially, Congress did not coordinate any of their generous provisions with the IRS and their capabilities – and all that was before the COVID19 shutdown of the IRS’s system.
This also means that people who didn’t already file 2018 and prior tax returns might not be able to get their stimulus checks until they file their 2020 returns.
NOTE: This also affects payroll tax returns – which are filed on paper.
Send them in on time (and save proof of the postmark if you can).
SEND THE PAYMENTS (via EFTPS) regardless.
The EFTPS system is the only way to make electronic payroll tax payments.
You cannot use pay.gov, though you might sill be able to pay through your bank?
if your business doesn’t already have an EFTPS account, set it up immediately.
It can normally take up to two weeks to set up – hopefully, it won’t take longer.
