IRS to delay April 15 tax deadline by a month

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Internal Revenue Service will be extending the April 15 tax filing deadline by about a month to mid-May, giving taxpayers additional time to file due to pandemic disruptions.

Numerous news outlets including the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post reported the delay, citing IRS, Treasury Department and Congressional sources, ahead of a formal announcement.

The newspapers said the delay was being prompted by a backlog already in processing 24 million tax returns as the Treasury is also in the process of distributing a new round of stimulus payments under the President Biden's American Rescue Plan.

The IRS, which has the authority to delay the tax deadline, had also extended the filing season last year at the start of Covid-19 pandemic.