Dear valued clients and friends of the firm:
HW&Co.’s number one priority is the safety and well-being of our people, clients, families and the communities in which we live and work. Accordingly, here is an update on how we are doing our part to prevent the spread of COVID-19, while doing our best to provide the high level of service you have come to know from HW&Co.
- Due to the rapidly changing conditions in the markets we serve, we have made several changes to the way we are currently doing business:
- We have fully implemented our Remote Workplace Plan and the vast majority of our staff are now working remotely.
- As a result, we are not currently scheduling any in-office meetings and ask our clients to plan on communicating with us by phone, emails or conference calls.
- We would also appreciate having important records sent to us by electronic means, if possible, including secure email or through our portal.
- On our end, we will be utilizing electronic delivery methods for our finished tax returns including the secure SafeSend email system.
Yesterday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced the IRS will give taxpayers an additional 90 days past the April 15th filing deadline to make their final tax payments for 2019. Individuals can defer payment on up to $1 million of tax payments and corporations are able to defer up to $10 million, without incurring any penalties or interest.
Based on this announcement, the actual filing due date for personal tax returns will remain April 15th. Taxpayers may still request an automatic extension to file their tax returns by October 15th. We are hopeful the IRS will provide more formal guidance in the next day or two. Now that the IRS has made its announcement, we need to wait and see how the state and local taxing authorities will adjust their due dates and payment dates.
We are deep into uncharted territory as a result of the pandemic. While we are attempting to maintain a “business as usual” attitude, we are also operating in ways we never envisioned, especially during the middle of tax filing season.
At HW&Co., we are committed to continuing to serve our clients in the manner we have in the past. The very fluid situation we find ourselves in has led to unexpected challenges to our daily work which often times results in delays. We apologize in advance if we take a little longer than normal to get back to you.
We appreciate your continued support and patience at this time. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding this matter.
