If you're stuck at home for the foreseeable future, there's no better time to do your taxes. Here's everything you need to get started.

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If you're stuck at home for the foreseeable future, there's no better time to do your taxes. Here's everything you need to get started.
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There's plenty of free time to file taxes.

  • Millions of Americans are being urged to stay indoors as the coronavirus stakes its claim on the country.
  • Whether the IRS decides to postpone the tax-filing deadline as a result of the financial chaos remains to be seen.
  • If you're staying home for the foreseeable future, there's plenty of time to file your taxes.
  • Read more personal finance coverage.

There's absolutely no good time for a pandemic like the coronavirus outbreak to happen. It's especially inopportune in the middle of a pivotal presidential election, the longest-running bull stock market, and tax season.

Despite hinting at extending the tax-filing deadline beyond April 15, neither the IRS nor the Trump administration has made any official announcement about tax relief for individual taxpayers or businesses.

In the meantime, employers nationwide are requesting that employees work from home, if their job allows it, and many states and cities are urging residents to stay indoors as events are canceled en masse and restaurants and bars close their doors indefinitely. Needless to say, millions of us may suddenly have a lot of extra time on our hands.

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Whether Americans are granted additional time to file (and perhaps more time to pay), anyone who isn't sick or directly impacted by the coronavirus should use a few hours of their newfound free time to file taxes.

It may be tempting to put off filing in hopes that the IRS does extend the deadline, but if you're owed a tax refund, you won't get it until you file (the IRS is still processing returns and paying out refunds as of now, but that could change, of course).

Rumor has it that the IRS may waive penalties and/or interest for those who owe taxes, but that only postpones your payment to a later date, and it's not easy to tell how long this financial downturn could last. If you have the money to pay your bill now, you might as well do it.

Here's all the information you need to file your taxes:

How to file:

Where to file:

Deductions:

Refunds:

Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Personal Finance Insider team. We occasionally highlight financial products and services that can help you make smarter decisions with your money. We do not give investment advice or encourage you to adopt a certain investment strategy. What you decide to do with your money is up to you. If you take action based on one of our recommendations, we get a small share of the revenue from our commerce partners. This does not influence whether we feature a financial product or service. We operate independently from our advertising sales team.

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