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IRS going offline just before Oct. 15 extended filing deadline

October 11, 2014

The drop-dead filing deadline for 2013 tax returns is just a few days away.

So of course the Internal Revenue Service is putting up a "closed" sign.

Out to LunchOK, it's more like a "taking a long lunch" sign.

But the bottom line is that many of the agency's systems will be offline starting at 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time today.

They will stay unavailable until approximately 5 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, Oct. 14.

Affected operations include:

  • e-Services Transcript Delivery,
  • Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) Matching,
  • e-file Application, and
  • Modernized e-file (MeF) and the legacy e-file systems, including both the MeF Production and the Assurance Testing Systems.

"This annual power outage is so IRS can perform necessary maintenance to some systems," the agency announced in a notice to tax professionals. "The IRS appreciates your patience while we perform this routine but necessary maintenance."

Annual bad timing: As the IRS announcement indicates, this is something it does every year around the Columbus Day federal holiday.

Yes, with most of its staff off on the holiday Monday, it's a convenient time to do the needed work under the tax machine hood.

But tax preparers, who are the ones who use many of the down services and therefore are most affected by the maintenance shutdown, can attest that's this three-day weekend generally isn't a holiday for them.

Procrastinating clients are just now getting their final bits of info to their tax pros. And these ultra-last-minute folks also tend to be the cranky clients who want to know that their bad filing habits are taken care of in a timely manner.

The IRS maintenance means that tax preparers now have the added, an unenviable, task of telling these taxpayers that they'll just have to wait.

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TAX-SAVVY WAYS 
TO WRAP UP 2026

It’s over! With October’s extended filing deadline behind us, it is now time to focus on year-end moves to reduce your 2026 tax bill. 

You’ll find ways to do just that on the Tax Tips page (see the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of the blog), as well as the separate tax tip pages for each month, notably October through December. If you’re on the Tax Tips page, you’ll find a monthly list at the end of this column. If you’re on another blog page, you can head straight to the October tips; at the bottom of that tips page you’ll find links to all the other 11 months’ collections of tax advice.

Not to spoil what you’ll find in that tax advice, but it does cover such things as tax deductions for charitable donations, investment moves that could reduce tax due, and ways to max out your tax-favored retirement savings. 

Finally, as the year winds down, things get hectic. There are lots of other things to occupy our time, like the much more fun upcoming holidays. But don’t lose sight of taxes, since timing is key. To be of use, most tax moves must be made by the end of the tax year. That’s Thursday, Dec. 31, which also is the last business day of the year. 

So that you don’t miss that final tax year deadline, also keep an eye on the countdown clock below. It will keep you on top of just how much time is left to make important, tax-saving moves. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

Credits/Deductions
Disasters
Family
Filing and Paying Taxes
Politics/Laws
Refunds
State Taxes
Tax Brackets/Inflation
Tax Tips
Comments
  • Jeffrey W. Schultz
    12 years ago Reply

    The tax practitioners hotline is going to be a mess tomorrow. Usually it is not to bad early in the morning if you are on the east coast. Most of the west coast is still in bed. But tomorrow there will be a crazy back up.

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