IRS to Automatically Process Refunds on Jobless-Benefit Payments
- New law makes $10,200 of unemployment payments tax-free
- Some taxpayers have already paid taxes on jobless benefits
IRS headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Photographer: Samuel Corum/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The Internal Revenue Service will automatically process refunds for individuals who paid taxes on their unemployment benefits before Congress passed a law making those payments tax-free, Commissioner Chuck Rettig said.
The automatic refund will mean that many recipients of unemployment benefits who have already filed their returns for 2020 won’t have to take extra steps to reclaim the taxes they paid but no longer owe -- on as much as $10,200 of jobless benefits. Taxpayers who have yet to submit their returns also have an additional month, until May 17, to file this year.