Oct 17 is the extended tax deadline for those who filed Form 4868 (Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return).

Filing Form 4868 gives you until October 15 to file a return. If October 15 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the due date is delayed until the next business day.

An estimated all-time high of 19 million American taxpayers filed an extension for their 2021 returns, according to the IRS.

The best advice the accountants can give is to file the return as soon as possible. Please note if you didn’t pay your balance by the April 18 deadline, you’ll owe interest and a late-payment penalty.

Interest rates for underpayments jump to 6% from 5% on Oct. 1 and compound daily, according to the IRS. And if you miss the tax deadline extension, you may owe a late-filing penalty.

If you are getting a refund, there is no penalty for failure-to-file, but you must file within three years to claim your refund.