TEI Requests Guidance from States Regarding Penalty Relief for State Corporate Tax Returns Filed by November 15, 2018.

• Position: Tax Executives Institute

In October 2018, TEI worked with the Council on State Taxation (COST) and AICPA to request that states issue guidance indicating they will waive late filing (but not late payment) penalties for state corporate tax returns due October 15 but filed by November 15,2018. TEI noted that late filing is preferable given the move of the federal filing deadline to October 15, the fact that the contacted state had not provided at least 30 days between the federal and state deadlines, and complexities the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act caused in the 2018 filing season. Following is a copy of the letter sent to the Illinois Department of Revenue.

We write to urge the Illinois Department of Revenue to issue guidance indicating it will automatically waive penalties for failure to file corporate tax returns due on October 15, 2018, if a taxpayer files such returns no later than November 15, 2018. The federal legislature changed the due date for filing extended federal corporate tax returns from September 15 to October 15 in 2016; however, your state has neither enacted legislation nor issued guidance similarly extending the time to file state corporate tax returns. Issuing the requested penalty waiver guidance will provide taxpayers additional time to prepare their state corporate tax returns and will alleviate the need for taxpayers to later file amended state corporate returns correcting errors.

About Tax Executives Institute

Tax Executives Institute (TEI) is the preeminent association of in-house tax professionals worldwide and was founded in 1944 to serve the professional needs of business tax professionals. Today, the organization has 57 chapters in Europe, North and South America, and Asia, creating a global network where members from all over the world share thoughts and ideas about issues relevant to in-house tax departments. Our nearly 7,000 members represent 2,800 companies in Europe, the United States, Canada, Asia, and Latin America.

TEI members are in-house tax practitioners (accountants, lawyers and other corporate and business employees) responsible for the tax affairs of their employers in an executive, administrative, or managerial capacity. TEI espouses organizational values and goals that include integrity, effectiveness, efficiency, and dedication to improving the tax system for the benefit of taxpayers and tax administrators.

Penalty Waiver Recommendation

The complexity of the federal tax law and the resulting reporting and compliance...