As a result of the severe storms in California at the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, in February of this year the IRS extended substantially all tax filing and payment dates until October 16, 2023, for all California residents except for residents of Lassen, Modoc, and Shasta counties. California granted the same extensions. Thus, most California taxpayers received extensions to file and pay their 2022 income taxes, 2022 gift taxes, estate tax returns falling due in 2023, and 2023 estimated income tax payments. Certain time-sensitive tax actions, including the 45- and 180-day deadlines for Section 1031 exchanges, were also extended.

Many California taxpayers scheduled their 2022 income tax and 2023 estimated income tax payments for October 16 so that those payments would be timely, and the IRS withdrew the scheduled tax payments on the morning of October 16. Nevertheless, later in the day, the IRS issued Notice 2023-189 further extending the October 16 tax filing and payment deadlines to November 16, 2023. Shortly thereafter, California granted the same extensions. Further, certain time-sensitive tax actions, including the deadlines for Section 1031 exchanges, have been extended.
 
Note also that under regulatory authority, the extensions granted by the IRS run concurrently with the extensions that a taxpayer could otherwise have obtained. Thus, if an individual died on September 17, 2022, the estate tax return was originally due nine months later, on June 17, 2023, but that due date has now been extended to November 16, 2023. If the executor wishes to obtain the automatic six-month extension to file the estate tax return, that period is measured from the original June 17 due date so that an extension is only available until December 17, 2023, not six months after November 16.

Please reach out to a member of our Taxation Group with any questions.