IRS Free File Survived While Direct File Didn't: Your 2026 Guide to Filing Free
IRS Free File is open to AGI of $89,000 or less for 2026, and Direct File is gone. Start at IRS.gov or your free return quietly becomes a paid one.
#tax-deadlines
Tax Deadlines
Important tax filing deadlines and compliance dates to remember
FUTA Credit Reduction States: Why Your Federal Unemployment Tax Bill Is Higher (and How to Report It on Schedule A)
California employers owe 1.8% FUTA for 2025 — $126 per employee instead of $42. Report the credit reduction on Schedule A of Form 940, due with the Q4 deposit.
UAE Small Business Relief Ends After 2026: Your Company's Final Election, the Loss-Year Trap, and the 9% Math Ahead
UAE Small Business Relief ends for tax periods after December 31, 2026 — elect it on your final return, but skip it in a loss year to keep the carryforward.
Form 5500 Filing for Small Business Retirement Plans: Who Must File, the 100-Participant Audit Tripwire, and Penalty Relief for Late Filers
Form 5500 is due July 31 for calendar-year plans; IRS late penalties run $250 a day up to $150,000, but DFVCP caps small-plan relief at $1,500.
The October 15 SEP IRA Second Chance: Fund Last Year's Retirement and Cut Last Year's Taxes
Extended your 2025 return? You can still open and fund a SEP IRA by October 15, 2026 (September 15 for S corps and partnerships) and deduct up to $70,000 — but Solo 401(k) elective deferrals for 2025 are gone for good.
The IRS's New Form 15620 for 83(b) Elections: What Startup Founders Need to Know About Filing Online in 2026
Form 15620 can now be submitted through an IRS Online Account, but the 83(b) election's 30-day deadline still has no routine extension. How the election works, when it pays, how to file online or by certified mail, and the six mistakes that sink it.
The Per-Partner, Per-Month Late-Filing Penalty: What a Late 1065 or 1120-S Really Costs You
A late Form 1065 or 1120-S costs $255 per owner per month for up to 12 months under IRC 6698/6699 — even when the entity owes zero tax. Here is how the math works, why first-time abatement does not apply, and how Revenue Procedure 84-35 can zero out the bill for partnerships with 10 or fewer partners.
Denied ERC Claim? Form 907 Can Stop the Two-Year Clock
A disallowed Employee Retention Credit starts a two-year statute under Section 6532(a) that appealing does not pause. Since April 2026, taxpayers with six months or less remaining can submit Form 907 through the IRS Document Upload Tool to extend it — who qualifies, how to file, and the five mistakes that still forfeit the refund.
Switching Payroll Providers Before January 1: The Migration, Tax-Deposit, and W-2 Checklist to Start in October
A January 1 payroll cutover is the cleanest one because a single provider owns all four Forms 941, the Form 940, and every W-2 — but it takes roughly twelve weeks of prep. This checklist covers the October-to-January timeline, the year-to-date and fringe-benefit data that must migrate, Form 8655 authorization and revocation, and the five handoff mistakes that generate IRS notices.
Contributed Too Much to Your 401(k)? How to Fix a 402(g) Excess Deferral Before April 15
For 2026 the section 402(g) elective deferral limit is $24,500 per person ($32,500 with the age-50 catch-up, $35,750 at ages 60 to 63), aggregated across every 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE IRA and SARSEP you contribute to in the year. An excess not refunded with earnings by April 15 is taxed twice, once as wages in the contribution year and again on distribution. Steps include totaling W-2 Box 12 deferrals, notifying the plan in writing, reading 1099-R codes P and 8, and capping payroll after a mid-year job change.
Does the Postmark Date Count as Your Tax Filing Date? The Mailbox Rule, Explained
Under Section 7502 a return mailed on or before its due date is deemed filed on the postmark date — but only if it actually arrives, and a postage-meter date never counts. Since December 24, 2025, USPS postmarks reflect regional processing rather than deposit, so certified mail or a free manual postmark is the proof that holds.
Switzerland Now Lets Small Businesses File VAT Once a Year: Should You Switch?
Since January 2025, Swiss businesses with taxable turnover up to CHF 5,005,000 and three clean filing periods can elect one annual VAT return through the SFTA ePortal instead of quarterly returns, but still pay advance installments on May 30, August 30 and November 30. Here is who qualifies, why the end-of-February election deadline matters, when quarterly filing is the better cash-flow choice, and the monthly bookkeeping habits that make annual filing safe.