Updated on 4/15/2026: The relief described below has been expanded to taxpayers in ALL 95 counties in the state of Tennessee. Tennessee taxpayers now have until June 8, 2026, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
TN-2026-01, April 3, 2026
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service announced today tax relief for individuals and businesses in Tennessee affected by Winter Storm Fern that began on Jan. 22, 2026. These taxpayers now have until May 22,2026, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
Following the disaster declaration issued by the State of Tennessee, individuals and households that reside or have a business in Cheatham, Chester, Clay, Davidson, Decatur, Dickson, Hardeman, Hardin, Henderson,Hickman, Lawrence, Lewis, Macon, Maury, McNairy, Perry, Robertson, Rutherford, Summer, Trousdale, Wayne, Williamson and Wilson counties qualify for tax relief. The declaration permits the IRS to postpone certain tax-filing and tax-payment deadlines for taxpayers who reside or have a business in the disaster area. For instance, for certain deadlines falling on or after Jan. 22, 2026, and on or before May 22, 2026, taxpayers are granted additional time to file.
As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until May 22, 2026, to file returns and pay any taxes that were originally due during this period.
The May 22, 2026, deadline applies to individual income tax returns and payments normally due on or after Jan.22, 2026. Penalties on payroll and excise tax deposits due on or after Jan. 22, 2026, and before Feb. 6, 2026, willbe abated as long as the tax deposits are made by Feb. 6, 2026.
This May 22, 2026, deadline also applies to affected quarterly payroll and certain excise tax returns normally dueon Feb. 2, 2026, and April 30, 2026.
If an affected taxpayer receives a late filing or late payment penalty notice from the IRS that has an original filing, payment or deposit due date that falls within the postponement period, the taxpayer should call the telephone number on the notice to have the IRS abate the penalty.
The IRS automatically identifies taxpayers located in the covered disaster area and applies filing and paymen trelief. But affected taxpayers who reside or have a business located outside the covered disaster area should call the IRS Special Services toll-free number at 866-562-5227 to request this tax relief. Tax practitioners in the covered disaster area, who maintain records necessary to meet a filing or payment deadline for taxpayers located outside the disaster area, may contact the IRS Special Services; if the practitioner maintains thenecessary records of ten or more clients, please refer to Bulk requests from practitioners for disaster relief for additional guidance.
Covered disaster area
The locality listed above constitutes a covered disaster area for purposes of Treas. Reg. §301.7508A-1(d)(2) andaffected taxpayers in the locality are entitled to the relief detailed below.
Affected taxpayers
Taxpayers considered to be affected taxpayers eligible for the postponement of time to file returns, pay taxes and perform other time-sensitive acts are those taxpayers listed in Treas. Reg. § 301.7508A-1(d)(1), and include individuals who live, and businesses (including tax-exempt organizations) whose principal place of business islocated, in the covered disaster area. Taxpayers not in the covered disaster area, but whose records necessary to meet a deadline listed in Treas. Reg. § 301.7508A-1(c) are in the covered disaster area, are also entitled to relief. Inaddition, all relief workers affiliated with a recognized government or philanthropic organization assisting in therelief activities in the covered disaster area and any individual visiting the covered disaster area who was killedor injured as a result of the disaster are entitled to relief.
Under section 7508A, the IRS gives affected taxpayers until May 22, 2026, to file most tax returns (including individual, corporate, and estate and trust income tax returns; partnership returns, S corporation returns, and trust returns; estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax returns; annual information returns of tax-exempt organizations; and employment and certain excise tax returns), that have either an original or extended due date occurring on or after Jan. 22, 2026, and before May 22, 2026.
Estimated income tax payments originally due on or after Jan. 22, 2026, are postponed through May 22, 2026,and affected taxpayers will not be subject to penalties for failure to pay estimated tax installments as long as such payments are paid on or before May 22, 2026.
The IRS also gives affected taxpayers until May 22, 2026, to perform other time-sensitive actions described in Treas. Reg. § 301.7508A-1(c)(1) and Rev. Proc. 2018-58, 2018-50 IRB 990 (December 10, 2018), that are due to be performed on or after Jan. 22, 2026, and on or before May 22, 2026.
Unless an act is specifically listed in Rev. Proc. 2018-58, the postponement of time to file and pay does not apply to information returns in the W-2, 1094, 1095, 1097, 1098 or 1099 series; to Forms 1042-S, 3921, 3922 or 8027; or to employment and excise tax deposits. However, penalties on deposits due on or after Jan. 22, 2026, and before Feb. 6, 2026, will be abated as long as the tax deposits were made by Feb. 6, 2026.
Casualty losses
Affected taxpayers in a federally declared disaster area have the option of claiming disaster-related casualtylosses on their federal income tax return for either the year in which the event occurred, or the prior year. Taxpayers have extra time – up to six months after the due date of the taxpayer’s federal income tax return forthe disaster year (without regard to any extension of time to file) – to make the election. For individual taxpayers,this means Oct. 15, 2026. See Publication 547 for details. Individuals may deduct personal property losses that are not covered by insurance or other reimbursements. For details, see Form 4684, Casualties and Thefts and its instructions. Affected taxpayers claiming the disaster loss on their return should put “Tennessee Winter Storm Fern” on any return.
Other relief
The IRS will waive the usual fees for requests for copies of previously filed tax returns for affected taxpayers.Taxpayers should put “Tennessee Winter Storm Fern” in bold letters at the top of Form 4506, Request for Copyof Tax Return, or Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return, as appropriate , and submit it tothe IRS.
Qualified disaster relief payments are generally excluded from gross income. This means that affected taxpayers can exclude from their gross income amounts received from a government agency for reasonable and necessary personal, family, living or funeral expenses, as well as for the repair or rehabilitation of their home, or for therepair or replacement of its contents. See Publication 525 for details.
Additional relief may be available to affected taxpayers who participate in a retirement plan or individual retirement arrangement (IRA). For example, a taxpayer may be eligible to take a special disaster distribution that would not be subject to the additional 10% early distribution tax and that the taxpayer may take into income over three years. See Form 8915-F, Qualified Disaster Retirement Plan Distributions and Repayments and Disaster relief frequently asked questions: Retirement plans and IRAs under the SECURE 2.0 Act of2022. Taxpayers may also be eligible to make a hardship withdrawal. Each plan or IRA has specific rules and guidance for their participants to follow.
The IRS may provide additional disaster relief in the future.
Taxpayers who do not qualify for disaster tax relief may qualify for reasonable cause penalty abatement. See Penalty relief for reasonable cause for additional information.
Affected taxpayers who are contacted by the IRS on a collection or examination matter should explain how the disaster impacts them so that the IRS can provide appropriate consideration to their case. Taxpayers may download forms and publications from the official IRS website, IRS.gov.
Reminder about tax return preparation options
- Eligible individuals or families can get free help preparing their tax return at Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) or Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) sites. To find the closest free tax help site, use the VITA Locator Tool or call 800-906-9887. Note that normally, VITA sites cannot help claim disaster losses.
- To find an AARP Tax-Aide site, use the AARP Site Locator Tool or call 888-227-7669.
- Any individual or family whose adjusted gross income (AGI) was $89,000 or less in 2025 can use IRS Free File’s Guided Tax Software at no cost. There are products in English and Spanish.
- Another Free File option is Free File Fillable Forms. These are electronic federal tax forms, equivalent to a paper 1040 and are designed for taxpayers who are comfortable filling out IRS tax forms. Anyone, regardless of income, can use this option.
- MilTax, a Department of Defense program, offers free return preparation software and electronic filing for federal tax returns and up to three state income tax returns. It’s available for all military members and some veterans, with no income limit.
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