Good (west coast) afternoon & (east coast) evening!

I’m writing my #FLM2015 blog a little later in the day than I anticipated, and my tardiness has me thinking…

How many Americans file for Federal tax extensions?

As I dig around, I see this US News & World Report article from April 2014 says the IRS was expecting 135 million tax returns and had received 12 million requests for extension, which is roughly 8% of filers for 2013.

Around the same ballpark, TurboTax claims that while roughly 20-25% of filers wait until the two weeks before April 15 to file, 7% (which they claim is 8 million people) of filers ask for an extension.

And, straight from the horse’s mouth, the IRS states that on Sep 30, 2014, a quarter of the nearly 13 million people who asked for extensions had still yet to file their taxes in advance of the Oct 15 deadline.

So, if you or your students ask for an extension, you’re not alone! Somewhere between 8 and 13 million people are right there with you. Myself included! *Tip: When you move across the country, make sure your old employer knows where you’ve moved to. Or, at least, start looking for your W2 early in the new year, so you realize right away that you didn’t receive your documents. Or, maybe start thinking about taxes before April rolls around…

About the Author

Jessica Endlich

When I started working at Next Gen Personal Finance, it's as though my undergraduate degree in finance, followed by ten years as an educator in an NYC public high school, suddenly all made sense.