Federal tax payments delays

[CCPA]

Has anyone had issues with their clients' federal tax payments not being paid electronically or paid late.

[strongsilence]

For me no one has mentioned it.

First, I suggest asking the client to practice patience. 

Next, I suggest asking the client for proof of a delay.

Maybe you call LC support if you know that it should have been paid. They can verify that the payments were set up and processed.  This is only if you have time and are not sure the ES were done correctly by you.

Good luck!

[sjrcpa]

One of my hyper clients was concerned payment was not withdrawn on 4/15. efiled and accepted 4/11. I told her to be patient. Payment withdrawn today 4/17.

[Lababs]

Yes concerning.  3 still as of 17th have not hit.  State of CA did and estimates made through direct pay did.  Just not through auto pay.

Checked boxes, accounts and date for withdrawal multiple times.  All correct

Same account as prior year so that is not the issue.

Any suggestions anyone?

[BobKamman]

Why is it always assumed this is an IRS problem?  Has anyone checked with the bank?  I often make payments online for which I get immediate credit, but that don't show up in my account for a day or two.  

[CCPA]

I am not assuming it is an IRS problem.  When I called the IRS Payment Inquiry number, they did not have any information for up to four days.  And when I talked to an agent, she said that it can take the IRS up to 7-10 days.  This is a problem as clients are then concerned that they will get charged by the IRS for late payments, albeit the return was filed on time.  It is a problem, because the tax preparer has to be the front person answering questions when they would like to take a day off.

[abctax55]

Warn your clients, in advance, that this often happens.  I do, especially the one client who sent in $ 1.1 million with her extension.  She hasn't called me to 'check on it'.  

My IRS payment hasn't cleared yet  And I've been sleeping like a baby (the Chardonnay, and tequila has helped - NOT on the same nights tho).  My CA payment cleared today.  

[IRonMaN]

Thought for the day.  How often did clients call you when the check they mailed to the IRS didn't clear fast enough?  Sometimes the "old days" of using paper checks weren't all that bad.

[davidmeyercpa]

I've had 6 clients reach out to me about delayed federal payments (state cleared). I reached out to my former firm — they're having similar issues with CCH Axcess federal payments. They called the bank about one client and confirmed there are no issues at the bank. I checked one payment — still hasn't cleared as of this morning.

[BobKamman]

The Treasury publishes a daily report of receipts by category, one of which is “Non-Withheld Ind/SECA Electronic”. These show collections this year are ahead of last year. (I think the numbers are in millions.)

April 15   Monthly   Year

105,893   240,488   2026
  99,163   208,364   2025

I wonder if there is a limit to the number of transactions that can be processed each day, so larger payments are processed before smaller ones. No one here is posting the amounts involved.

Last year, the April 16 amount was $59,916. This year it was $66,137.

So the money is flowing at the same rate to Treasury.

[hieploi_1028]

Thanks for the update on this. This is what I've been dealing with all morning and over the weekend. Federal due amounts marked for April 15th and extension payments for the 15th all still have no activity but State payments were all pulled on the 17th. Just spending time on the phone and emails letting folks know to give it 7-10 business days. 

[strongsilence]

"This is a problem as clients are then concerned that they will get charged by the IRS for late payments, albeit the return was filed on time.  It is a problem, because the tax preparer has to be the front person answering questions when they would like to take a day off."

I see this in myself so I'm not declaring any flaw in your character or that you are not kind or not nice. Yours is an attitude of a fixer. You do not have to be the "front person".

Your main goal on April 15, April 16, April 17, April 18 and April 19, and maybe even April 20, is to be happy. It NOT to be nice.

(It took me until age 61 and a long talk with a minister on April 16 to understand that this part of my personality sometimes doesn't fit with a productive and happy workplace.)

[BobKamman]

@CCPA  "It is a problem, because the tax preparer has to be the front person answering questions when they would like to take a day off."

It is only a problem for the front person who sold them the glitchy option promoted by IRS of making a last-minute online payment at the same time as their return is filed.  Whatever made you think the payment would be processed the same day as the return was accepted?  

[rservercpa]

I don't know how we can be a week after the deadline and payments submitted through Lacerte still have not processed yet anything I submitted separately through IRS DirectPay processed the very next day.

[strongsilence]

Hi rservercpa,

The answer is intuitive to me.  You seem worried.

[George4Tacks]

My Tuesday April 14 evening filing for April 15 had direct debit of payment and estimate. Both finally were processed by the bank on Monday April 20.

[BobKamman]

As we were saying last year, about how this happens every year  . . .

https://accountants.intuit.com/community/proseries-tax-discussions/discussion/2024-federal-tax-payme... 

[IRonMaN]

But I do have to admit that it is nice to see posts that don't involve overtime or tips. 😁

[ymcpa]

I have a dozen extensions that haven't cleared as of 4/22. I have 2 payments that are in the millions, 3 over $100k, 5 in the 10 thousands, and a couple that are a few thousand. So, the dollar amount doesn't seem to be the issue. 

[Kathi_at_Intuit]

Hello! Thanks for posting in the Community about the delay in Federal tax payments. As @strongsilence and others have stated on the Community, patience is needed. Delays can be normal and it is advised to wait 7-10 days after the return has been accepted. If after this time, payments are still delayed, you would need to reach out to the appropriate taxing authority. Also, as @BobKamman mentioned you could check with the bank to see if they see anything pending. Please note that Lacerte doesn't have records of whether or not electronic payments are being withdrawn. 

[Karl]

I personally haven't had any clients reach out about this, and I have a decent amount that were set for auto-debit on the 15th.

Some recommendations for the future:

1. Put in your (auto-)messaging that these transactions are ACH, which doesn't happen instantly. Taxpayers should not panic if it takes a couple of days to show on their bank side.
2. Clarify to clients that the IRS and states are like bickering step-siblings. What one does is unconnected from what the other does. The fact that a state withdrew funds (or sent a refund, for that matter), while the IRS didn't/hasn't yet, is an irrelevant data point.
3. Make sure your EL clarifies that your liability ends with submission of e-file. As long as you've verified the bank info is accurate on the front end, then it's on the bank/IRS/state. Of course it doesn't stop clients from calling and expecting you to solve it, but IF there is a bank/IRS/state failure to process in some way, that will help a lot in limiting your liability if any penalties are incurred and non-abateable.
4. Keep a list of all these clients raising a panic. Either fire them, or tell them that next year, auto-debits need to be set 10 days early to avoid this.

[BobKamman]

@ymcpa If the dollar amount doesn't seem to be the issue, how about the bank?  Are these all with the same financial institution, like the Snake Milkers Credit Union?