Extensions don’t trigger IRS audits

Not filing a return or failing to pay your tax bill much worse

Taxes are due today. So what should you do if you can’t finish your return on time or if you don’t have the money to pay your taxes now?

There is a common belief that you should be among the masses filing by the deadline so you don’t draw attention to yourself from the IRS and bring on an audit.

But there’s a difference of opinion among tax professionals about whether the belief about audits is valid. Taxpayers who can’t meet the deadline can file for an extension that will let them submit their tax return later. And they should file for an extension if they can’t get their tax return done right in time for today’s filing date, said San Francisco tax attorney Robert Wood.

The most dangerous approach would be to file in a rush and make mistakes, he said. Mistakes can result in penalties. So if you can’t get your tax return right, he said, you can buy yourself six extra months by formally applying for an extension with Form 4868. The deadline for filing a Form 4868 is also today, but the extension gives you until Oct. 16 to get your return in order and filed.

Chicago tax attorney Robert McKenzie thinks in the current environment you may have less chance of getting audited if you file for a six-month extension than if you are on time with your return in April.

The reason: The IRS has suffered huge staff reductions and has had to cut back on audits. If the staff has taken on all the audits it can handle with the returns filed by April, the IRS may be less able to devote attention to those with extensions.

Despite the cutbacks, taxpayers always risk the chance that they’ll be caught if they make mistakes or cheat. McKenzie notes that the IRS has computers that spot red flags in any filing — whether in April or in an October extension.