Missed the 2290 Deadline? Do This Now to Limit Penalties

Today is the deadline — and if you're reading this after it, take a breath. Thousands of filers end up here every season, and the path back is short and well-marked. The only truly bad option is waiting longer.

Step 1: File today, even if you can't pay today

The late-filing penalty (4.5% per month, up to five months) is the big one, and it stops accruing the day your return is filed. The late-payment penalty (0.5% per month) is far smaller. Filing now and paying as soon as you can is dramatically cheaper than waiting until you can do both at once.

Step 2: Get the Schedule 1 where it's needed

E-filing returns your stamped Schedule 1 within minutes of IRS acceptance, late or not. If a registration or IRP renewal is waiting on it, you can usually un-stick that process the same day.

Step 3: Consider reasonable cause

If the delay had a genuine cause — hospitalization, disaster, circumstances beyond your control — you may attach a statement explaining it. The IRS evaluates these individually; honesty and documentation help, boilerplate doesn't.

Step 4: Make next year boring

Put two dates in your calendar now: July 1 (season opens) and August 31 (deadline). File in the first two weeks of July next season and this entire article becomes irrelevant to you — which is the goal.