Free Tool
What Does Filing
Late Really Cost?
An estimate of the IRS penalties for filing or paying late, including the partnership penalty that runs up per owner per month even when the return owes nothing at all.
Figures for tax year 2026, checked against IRS and California FTB sources on 2026-08-27.
Before you pay it
File even when you cannot pay
Failure to file runs at ten times the monthly rate of failure to pay. Sending the return without the money removes the bigger penalty straight away, and it is the most useful thing you can do today if you are behind.
Penalties can often be removed
The IRS operates a first time penalty abatement, and it also removes penalties for reasonable cause. Neither happens automatically and both have to be asked for properly. Worth a conversation before you pay a penalty notice.
Interest is separate and has no cap
Interest runs on the tax and on the penalties, it is reset every quarter, and unlike the penalties it never stops climbing. That is why a balance left alone for years grows past what anyone expects.
California charges its own
These are federal figures. The Franchise Tax Board adds its own late filing and late payment penalties on top, at different rates and with their own minimums.
Penalty rules carry exceptions, and the IRS can reduce or remove a penalty on request. This is a general estimate, not tax advice, and using it does not make you a client. Your own position can differ. Ask us and we will work it out properly, at no cost.