The IRS urges everyone to file electronically in order to avoid delays and speed the processing of their return.
October 15 is the deadline for just about everyone. Only members of the military and others serving in a combat zone, have more time. They normally have 180 days after they leave the combat zone to file and pay any taxes due.
There is usually no penalty for failure to file if the taxpayer is due a refund. However, people who wait too long to file and claim a refund, risk losing it altogether. The safest and fastest way for people to get a refund is to file electronically and have their refund electronically deposited into their bank or other financial account. Taxpayers can use direct deposit to deposit their refund into one, two or even three accounts.
IRS Free File is still available in English and Spanish giving taxpayers who earned $72,000 or less in 2020 a way to file and claim credits like the Recovery Rebate Credit, Advanced Child Tax Credit. The Free File Fillable Forms, the electronic version of IRS paper forms, is also available for people comfortable preparing their own taxes.