Smith and Company, CPA’s tax clients:

Hope you are healthy and reasonably navigating this difficult time.  I am alerting everyone to some tax updates. 

The facts:

1. Tax filing dates for Federal, California, and many states have been extended from April 15^th to July 15^th
2. Extensions need to be filed by July 15
3. With some exceptions, the requirement to pay by April 15th has been extended to July 15th for 2019 federal and state income taxes
4. First quarter estimated taxes for 2020 are now due July 15th
5. There will be no interest and penalties charged from April 15^th to July 15^th

There is no other specific guidance given regarding changes related to retirement or other tax issues at this point.

In times of difficulty and uncertainty, there may be opportunities for some taxpayers to soften the blow through tax planning. For some taxpayers, harvesting some of the stock losses might be wise. For others, planning may need to change from tax reduction to planning for maximizing use of losses, or decreasing estimated tax payments, or taking advantage of the new law incentives that may be enacted. Businesses, taxpayers and lawmakers are still in the process of adapting and adjusting to an unprecedented reality, but the good news is that we are still early in the 2020 tax year and should have time to devise and implement strategies. Let us know the changes you see in your situation so we can keep them in mind as we work through this.

Please note we are balancing our in-office and work at home needs according to the county requirements and new deadlines.  There may be a longer than normal delay in replies given life circumstances right now, and we thank you for your patience and consideration.

We are here to discuss and think about all of this with you. We will update you as we learn more.