How to confirm the exact amount owed after tax extension?
I'm in a bit of a pickle with my in-laws' tax situation. They filed an extension for their 2024 taxes but waited until September to have them prepared by a professional. Now it's been about 2 months since they got their completed returns, but they still haven't made the payment because they're confused about the actual amount due. Their completed tax forms show the original amount they owe, but since it's well past the April 18th deadline, they think there might be penalties and interest added by now. I tried to help by setting up an online IRS account for my father-in-law (they file jointly), but surprisingly, the account doesn't display any balance due yet. Is it safe for them to just pay the amount shown on their completed tax return? Or do they need to calculate and include the penalties and interest that have accumulated since April? If so, how exactly do they determine the total amount including all these extra charges? I'd appreciate any guidance on helping them resolve this before it gets worse!
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Abigail Patel
Your in-laws should pay the amount shown on their tax return ASAP to stop additional penalties and interest from accruing. When you file an extension, it only extends the time to file the paperwork, not the time to pay what's owed. The IRS started calculating penalties and interest from the original April 18th deadline. The IRS will eventually send them a bill for the penalties and interest. The penalties include a failure-to-pay penalty (usually 0.5% of unpaid taxes per month) and interest (federal short-term rate plus 3%, compounded daily). These will continue to grow until the original tax amount is paid.
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Daniel White
•Thanks for the info! Quick question - if they pay the original amount now, will the IRS automatically bill them later for just the penalties and interest? Or should they try to calculate that themselves somehow? And is there any way to reduce these penalties? My parents are in a similar situation.
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Abigail Patel
•The IRS will automatically send a bill for the penalties and interest after they process the original payment. No need for them to calculate it themselves, though they can estimate it for planning purposes. Yes, they may qualify for penalty relief through the IRS First Time Penalty Abatement program if they have a clean compliance history for the past 3 years. They'd need to call the IRS after receiving the penalty notice and specifically request this relief. It doesn't apply to interest charges, but eliminating the penalties would significantly reduce what they owe.
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Nolan Carter
I was in almost the exact same situation last year with my tax extension. After spending hours trying to figure out the correct amount with penalties, I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which saved me so much headache. I just uploaded my tax documents, and it calculated everything including the proper penalties and interest. It even created a payment plan proposal based on my situation.
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Natalia Stone
•That sounds useful, but does it handle joint returns too? My wife and I are in a similar boat with our extension from this year and I'm worried about calculating everything correctly.
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Tasia Synder
•I'm skeptical about these online calculators. How accurate is it with the interest calculations? The IRS interest rates have changed multiple times this year and that's what's confusing me most about my late payment.
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Nolan Carter
•It absolutely handles joint returns - that's actually what I used it for. The system asks about filing status upfront and tailors everything accordingly. The interest calculation is spot-on because they update their system whenever the IRS changes rates. It factors in the federal short-term rate plus 3% that the IRS uses, and correctly compounds it daily just like the IRS does. It saved me from underestimating by almost $240 when I finally got the IRS notice.
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Tasia Synder
Just wanted to follow up about my experience with taxr.ai. I decided to try it after posting here, and I'm really glad I did! It nailed the calculation to the penny - I verified this when I finally got my IRS notice last week. I actually found out I qualified for first-time penalty abatement which I had no idea about. Saved me over $300 in penalties! The document analysis tool caught some deductions my previous tax preparer missed too. Definitely worth checking out if you're dealing with extension payment issues.
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Selena Bautista
If your in-laws need to talk directly with the IRS to get the exact amount, good luck getting through to them! I spent 3 weeks trying to reach someone about my penalty calculation. Then I found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) which got me connected to an IRS agent in under 15 minutes. You can see a demo of how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - completely changed my view on dealing with the IRS. They confirmed my exact balance and even helped me set up a payment plan right there on the call.
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Mohamed Anderson
•How does this actually work? I'm confused how a third-party service can get you through to the IRS faster than calling directly. Doesn't everyone have to go through the same phone system?
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Ellie Perry
•Yeah right. Nothing gets you through to the IRS faster. I've been trying to call them for 2 months about penalty abatement. This sounds like a scam to get desperate people's money.
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Selena Bautista
•It works by using their call technology that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold for you. When an actual agent picks up, you get a call connecting you directly to that agent. No more listening to the hold music for hours. Everyone does go through the same system, but the difference is their system is continuously calling and navigating the complex IRS phone menus automatically instead of you having to do it manually and wait on hold yourself. It's basically just automating the frustrating parts of the process.
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Ellie Perry
I have to eat my words about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I was desperate enough to try it because I couldn't get through to discuss my penalty abatement. It actually worked exactly as described - I got a call back with an IRS agent on the line in about 23 minutes. The agent confirmed my exact payoff amount including all penalties and interest and even processed my abatement request on the spot. I would have spent another month trying without this. Sometimes being wrong feels pretty good!
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Landon Morgan
Don't overthink this. Just pay the original amount shown on the return ASAP through the IRS Direct Pay website. Make sure to select the right tax year and reason for payment. The IRS will send a separate bill for penalties and interest later - usually within 2-3 weeks after they process the original payment. That's what happened with me.
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Teresa Boyd
•If they pay online through Direct Pay, will they get some kind of confirmation they can keep for their records? My mom is nervous about making sure she has proof of payment.
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Landon Morgan
•Yes, they'll receive an immediate confirmation page and email after making the payment through Direct Pay. I'd recommend taking a screenshot of the confirmation page and saving the email. The confirmation includes a tracking number that can be used to verify the payment was received if needed.
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Lourdes Fox
If they're worried about the exact amount, they can also call the IRS automated system at 1-800-829-1040. I was able to get my balance without talking to a human. Just needed my SSN, filing status, and zip code from last return. It's not as helpful as talking to a person but at least gives you the current balance.
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Bruno Simmons
•The automated system is hit or miss though. It didn't show my balance for nearly 6 weeks after I filed my late return. Shows $0 when you know you owe money is even more stressful!
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Jasmine Quinn
I went through this exact situation with my parents last year. The key thing to remember is that paying the original amount on the return immediately stops the bleeding - no more penalties and interest accumulating on that base amount. What I learned is that the IRS system can take 4-6 weeks to update online accounts after processing payments, which explains why the online account isn't showing a balance yet. Don't let that delay action though. Here's what worked for us: We paid the original tax amount through IRS Direct Pay, kept all confirmation records, and then waited for the penalty/interest bill. When it came about 3 weeks later, we called and successfully got first-time penalty abatement since they had a clean history. The interest still had to be paid (about $85 in our case), but eliminating the penalties saved almost $400. The most important thing is to act now rather than waiting for perfect information. Every day they delay costs more money in additional interest.
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