The coronavirus prompted the IRS in March to extend the deadline for individuals to file their 2019 returns, and pay their 2019 taxes, from April 15 to July 15. In addition to processing returns during that time, the agency also had to implement COVID-19 relief measures passed by Congress in the spring.
The virus also caused the IRS in March to direct most of its employees to work remotely, bringing a halt to key agency functions that cannot be performed remotely. As it started to bring employees back to their worksites in recent weeks, workers faced a backlog of tax returns to process and taxpayers to assist. Continue reading.