Washington: United States President Donald Trump has announced that he will instruct the Treasury Department to allow individuals and businesses negatively affected by the coronavirus to defer their tax payments beyond the April 15 filing deadline. In an address from the Oval Office, the president said Wednesday he would use his emergency authority to implement the procedure.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Congress earlier Wednesday that the payment delay would have the effect of putting more than USD 200 billion back into the economy that would otherwise go to paying taxes next month. He did not indicate what the new deadline would be.
Mnuchin told reporters that the delay would cover ‘virtually all Americans other than the super-rich’. He said the delay would not apply to large corporations or very wealthy taxpayers but he did not offer any specific income or asset thresholds that would be needed to qualify for the delay.
Mnuchin said the delay would allow individuals to not pay their taxes by the April 15 deadline. The IRS would also waive interest payments or other penalties for missing the deadline. Under current IRS rules, taxpayers can get an automatic extension on filing their tax returns but they are required to pay tax on the estimated amount they will owe when they do file.
Members of Congress have urged the administration to take this step amid the coronavirus crisis.
In addition to using emergency authority to allow taxpayers who have been affected by the virus to defer their taxes, the president said effective immediately, he would have the ‘Small Business Administration’ start providing low-interest loans for businesses in states and US territories that have been affected by the virus. Trump said these loans would help small businesses overcome the economic disruptions that have been caused by the virus. In addition, he said he would request that Congress boost this loan pool by providing an additional USD 50 billion in funding for the SBA.
AP
