What is the penalty for paying taxes on time, but filing late?

[Gordon Gekko]

SOMEONE PLEASE HELP

Say you correctly estimated your taxes due and paid 100% of it on time, BUT you filed the paperwork late. What happens?! How bad is the penalty??

 

[DesertTrader]

Pay what you owe and file for an extension by April 15th. The extension is automatic (for most taxpayers) and gives you until Aug 15th to file.

 

[Gordon Gekko]

is this the answer?

"The penalty for failing to file on time is five percent per month of the balance owed. If a taxpayer files more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty is $100 or the balance due, whichever is less. The penalty for paying late is 0.5 percent per month of the balance owed. This rate drops to 0.25 percent per month for a taxpayer who files on time and enters into an installment agreement with the IRS to pay the balance owed. There is no late filing penalty on a refund return, but a taxpayer who fails to claim a refund within three years of the filing deadline generally loses the right to that refund."

So from reading that, if you pay all your taxes on time, and say you even paid $1 extra, if you file late you won't get a penalty. However, if you fail to claim your refund within 3 years, you probably won't get it.

 

[omcate]

Quote from Gordon Gekko:

So from reading that, if you pay all your taxes on time, and say you even paid $1 extra, if you file late you won't get a penalty.

Yes. That part is correct. I filed my tax return in June last year without applying for an extension. Since I have overpaid the Federal and the State tax, I did not get any penalty.