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IRS may owe millions of taxpayers refunds for pandemic-era penalty relief. How to file a claim

Cnbc · · 624 words · By Kate Dore; CFP; EA
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What to know about IRS may owe millions of taxpayers refunds for pandemic-era penalty relief. How to file a claim

For most filers, the tax deadline has come and gone.

Claims checked 7
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center75%
Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

For most filers, the tax deadline has come and gone.

Why it matters

But thanks to a federal court decision, millions of Americans could still be eligible for tax refunds for pandemic-era penalties and interest.

Common ground

The issue stems from recent rulings, including Kwong v.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/11/kwong-v-united-states-tax-refund-deadline.html

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 3
verified Verified By Reference 2
info Single Source 2
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Claim 1: “Kwong v. United States, which found that the IRS shouldn't have assessed certain penalties and interest from Jan. 20, 2020, through July 10, 2023”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm the ruling in Kwong v. United States regarding the suspension of tax deadlines and the potential for refunds of penalties and interest paid during the pandemic.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chinese Americans are Americans of Chinese ancestry. They have ancestors from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, as well as other regions of the Chinese diaspora, especiall…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Americans
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — L. K. Samuels (born December 7, 1951), also known as Lawrence Samuels, is an American author and libertarian activist associated with classical liberal political movements in California. He is known a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L._K._Samuels
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Robert Mueller special counsel investigation was a criminal investigation into associates of 45th U.S. president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin regarding Russian interference in…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mueller_special_counsel_invest…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 2: “If taxpayers filed returns and paid taxes on time, they generally have three years after the filing deadline to claim unpaid refunds, which brings the due date to July 10, 2026.”
CORROBORATED
The IRS official site and other sources confirm the general 3-year rule for claiming refunds. Specifically, two separate web sources mention the July 10 deadline in the context of pandemic-era claims.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 New Zealand general election is planned to be held on 7 November 2026. Voters will elect 120 members to the House of Representatives under New Zealand's mixed-member proportional (MMP) voting…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_New_Zealand_general_elect…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Eight polling firms have conducted opinion polls during the term of the 54th New Zealand Parliament (2023–present) for the 2026 New Zealand general election. The regular polls are the quarterly polls …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2026_N…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Taxpayers are an American punk rock band formed in 2007 in Portland, Oregon. The band is known for their DIY punk ethic and commitment to inclusivity. They have been noted for experimenting with d…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Taxpayers
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 3: “The failure-to-file penalty is 5% of your unpaid taxes monthly, up to 25%, while the failure-to-pay penalty is 0.5% of your balance monthly, with the same cap.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including the IRS and tax calculators, confirm the failure-to-file penalty is 5% per month (up to 25%) and the failure-to-pay penalty is 0.5% per month.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — IRS is the United States Internal Revenue Service, the revenue service of the U.S. federal government. IRS, irs, or IRs may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IRS_(disambiguation)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Indian Revenue Service (IAST: Bhāratīya Rājasva Sevā), often abbreviated as IRS, is a civil service that is primarily responsible for collecting and administering direct and indirect taxes. As a c…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Revenue_Service
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service of the U.S. federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_Revenue_Service
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 4: “Erin Collins heads the Taxpayer Advocate Service, an independent organization within the IRS.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Both Wikipedia and official leadership pages confirm that Erin M. Collins is the United States Taxpayer Advocate and head of the Taxpayer Advocate Service, an independent organization within the IRS.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Erin M. Collins is the current United States Taxpayer Advocate, and head of the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate, an independent organization within the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) established to pr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erin_M._Collins
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service of the U.S. federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_Revenue_Service
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Office of the Taxpayer Advocate, also called the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS), is an office within the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, reporting directly …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_the_Taxpayer_Advocat…
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 5: “That includes the Covid-19 federal disaster period through May 11, 2023, plus an extra 60 days.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While the general context of COVID-19 is present in Wikipedia, the specific dates (May 11, 2023, and the extra 60 days) are not mentioned in the provided evidence snippets. The web results for this claim are irrelevant (digital marketing agencies).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Starting in January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This article contains the monthly cumulative number of deaths from the pandemic of COVID-19 reported by each country, territory, and subnational area to the World Health Organization (WHO) and publish…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_deaths
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been efforts by scientists, governments, and others to determine the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Similar to other outbreaks, the virus was …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_SARS-CoV-2
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
Claim 6: “Most taxpayers can use Form 843 to request a refund or abatement, but it can't be filed electronically and must be mailed”
SINGLE SOURCE
Multiple sources confirm that Form 843 is used for refunds and abatements. However, the specific claim that it 'can't be filed electronically and must be mailed' is not explicitly confirmed or denied in the provided snippets; they only describe the form's purpose.
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web search NEUTRAL — Taxpayers use Form 843 to claim a refund (or abatement) of certain overpaid (or over-assessed) taxes, interest, penalties, and additions to tax.Request for Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and Cer…
https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-843
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web search NEUTRAL — Form 843 is a form you submit to the IRS if you want a refund or abatement from the IRS for a penalty or certain taxes. You’ll usually use this form to request penalty relief when you’ve incurred a pe…
https://damienslaw.com/forms/form-843/
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web search NEUTRAL — Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement, allows you to request a refund or abatement of certain taxes, penalties, or interest. So, what's an abatement? In the context of taxes, abatement …
https://www.bench.co/blog/tax-tips/irs-form-843
info
Claim 7: “During fiscal year 2023, the IRS assessed more than 14.2 million individual estimated tax penalties and roughly 18.6 million penalties for failure to pay, according to the agency's latest data.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence mentions that the IRS assessed 'more than 120 million penalties' in total, but does not provide the specific breakdown of 14.2 million estimated tax penalties and 18.6 million failure-to-pay penalties for FY 2023.
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web search NEUTRAL — There are two ways to pay tax: Withholding from your pay, your pension or certain government payments, such as Social Security. Making quarterly estimated tax payments during the year. Estimated tax p…
https://www.irs.gov/payments/underpayment-of-estimated-tax-b…
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web search NEUTRAL — During that time, the IRS assessed more than 120 million penalties against tens of millions of taxpayers for filing late returns, failing to pay taxes or failing to make required estimated tax payment…
https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/covid-19-irs-refund-tax-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Failure-to-pay penalties, which are charged at the standard rate of 0.5% of the unpaid tax for each month they remain unpaid, according to the IRS.IRS releases surprising data for Taxpayers. Millions …
https://www.thestreet.com/personal-finance/irs-refund-opport…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.