IRS tells millions to hold off on filing income tax returns

Update: Feb. 10, 2023, 11:30 a.m. EST: The IRS announced that 21 states issued special payments in 2022. The 21 states are: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Virginia.

Original story:

The Internal Revenue Service is telling millions of taxpayers to wait to file their 2022 tax returns until the agency can decide whether state rebate checks issued in 2022 will count as taxable income, the agency said this week.

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Twenty-one states approved stimulus or rebate payments in 2022, and the agency has not yet decided how those funds will be considered by the IRS.

“The IRS is aware of questions involving special tax refunds or payments made by states in 2022; we are working with state tax officials as quickly as possible to provide additional information and clarity for taxpayers,” the IRS said in a statement.

The IRS said that if you have already filed your 2022 return and are a resident of one of the 19 states, you should not amend the return yet.

“There are a variety of state programs that distributed these payments in 2022 and the rules surrounding them are complex. We expect to provide additional clarity for as many states and taxpayers as possible next week,” the statement read.

If you have not filed your 2022 tax return, the IRS recommends you “wait for additional clarification on state payments rather than calling the IRS.”