Extended 2025 returns are due October 15 — and there is no second extension. Here is the three-week game plan, what missing it actually costs, and what to do if you can't pay.
If you filed Form 4868 back in April, your 2025 return is due Wednesday, October 15. That's the whole runway — the IRS does not grant a second extension. Here's how to land it cleanly.
The extension only extended your time to file, not to pay. If you miss October 15 with a balance due, the failure-to-file penalty doesn't start counting from October — it's calculated retroactively from April 15: 5% of the unpaid tax per month, up to 25%. File more than 60 days late and the minimum penalty is $525 or 100% of the tax due, whichever is smaller. Interest runs on top of all of it.
If you're due a refund, there's no late-filing penalty — but the IRS keeps your money interest-free until you file, and after three years, forever.
The one move that's always wrong in October: not filing because you can't pay. File, then solve the payment. The penalties for silence are ten times worse.
Sitting on a half-finished return? Send it to us this week — three weeks is comfortable for a professional finish, but not if you start on October 13.
Talk it through with a licensed US tax professional — we'll tell you honestly whether it applies to your situation.
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The 20% QBI deduction is permanent and the Social Security wage base hit $184,500 — the two numbers that decide whether an S election pays. The honest decision grid, including the case where staying a plain LLC wins.
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