January 1, IRS Paying Interest to People with Delayed Tax Refunds

The Internal Revenue Service has announced that it will start paying 5 percent in guaranteed interest to individuals with delayed tax returns in July.

The agency will also pay 4 percent interest on delayed corporate tax returns, 5 percent on underpayments on tax returns, and 7 percent for “large corporate underpayments.”

Law allots the IRS 45 days to process a tax refund.

“The IRS is sitting on 13 million unprocessed tax returns and over 26 million tax returns that are waiting needing further IRS action,” Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C.) said during a House subcommittee hearing last week.

“At the same time, IRS phone service levels are near all-time lows, making it nearly impossible to reach an IRS agent for help with tax or audit matters.”

According to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report published last month, the IRS has paid out nearly $14 billion in delayed refund interest over the last seven fiscal years.

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IRS to pay 5 percent interest to individuals with delayed tax refunds