Table of contents:
What is an extension of time to file
The original due date to file your U.S. tax return is:
April 15 for U.S. residents and non-U.S. residents with state filing requirements.
June 15 for non-U.S. residents with only federal filing requirements (e.g., U.S. persons living abroad).
An extension of time to file (i.e., tax filing extension) allows individuals and businesses to postpone the submission of their tax returns without incurring late filing penalties. However, it does not extend the deadline to pay taxes — any taxes owed must still be paid by April 15 to avoid interest and penalties on unpaid taxes, even if you live abroad.
Common reasons for filing an extension:
Living abroad and waiting for foreign tax information.
Waiting on critical documents, e.g., K-1s from partnerships, hedge funds, REITs, 1099s, or foreign income reports.
Waiting for final income statements or business expenses to be tallied for self-employed individuals.
Complicated life events – property sale, change in marital status, medical emergencies, job relocations, family crises, new business ventures.
Needing more time to gather deductions or credits, e.g., foreign housing exclusion.
❗ Important notes:
Filing deadlines change annually — always check the Filing deadlines article for the most up-to-date information.
If you haven’t filed for multiple years, inform your tax preparer — they can help determine whether an extension is the best option for you.
Types of extensions you can request in your TFX account
In your TFX account, you can request TFX to file federal and state extensions for individuals and businesses.
Personal extensions for individuals:
Federal extension:
Form 4868 provides an automatic six-month extension to file your federal tax return, moving your deadline to October 15.
IRS due date:
U.S. residents and non-U.S. residents with state filing requirements: File by April 15.
Non-U.S. residents with only federal filing requirements: File by June 15.
How to request it through your TFX account: From January 30 to April 13 (or June 13), go to Extensions, click Request extension, select Personal, and click Submit. See the detailed instructions below.
Cost:
$50 retainer (remains as credit in your TFX account).
Free if the engagement letter is signed and prepaid (i.e., you made a payment for engaging TFX).
Additional federal extension:
A discretionary two-month extension is available only for TFX clients — non-U.S. residents or U.S. residents with foreign income — but only if the federal personal extension (Form 4868) has already been filed. This additional extension request is a physical letter that must be mailed to the IRS, extending the filing deadline to December 15.
IRS due date: Mail by October 15.
How to request it through your TFX account: From June 30 to October 13, go to Extensions, click Request extension, select "Personal Dec 15 (additional request)", and click Submit. See the detailed instructions below.
Cost:
Free if the engagement letter is signed and prepaid.
$350 retainer (the amount will be reduced by available credit and remain as credit in your TFX account) if the engagement letter is unsigned and unpaid.
+ $50 (which will be deducted from available credit) if TFX mails the additional extension request on your behalf.
State extension:
Most states accept federal extensions if no state tax is due, but some states require a separate state-specific extension to move your filing deadline to October 15. For example:
New York (NY) requires Form IT-370.
District of Columbia (DC) requires Form FR-127.
Due date: File by April 15.
How to request it through your TFX account: From January 30 to April 13, go to Extensions, click Request extension, select Personal, choose the relevant U.S. state under "Do you need an extension for either of these states below?", and click Submit. See the detailed instructions below.
Cost: No additional charge.
Non-personal extensions for businesses:
Single-member LLC (disregarded entity), sole proprietor, and individual entrepreneur:
Federal & state extensions:
Since these entities report income on individual tax returns (Form 1040 or Form 1040-NR), they follow the personal extension process.
Due date: Same as for individuals.
How to request it through your TFX account: Follow the instructions for individuals.
Cost: Same as for individuals.
Corporation, partnership, multi-member LLC, LLC elected to be treated as a corporation, and trust:
Federal & state extension:
Federal Form 7004 grants an automatic six-month extension.
IRS due date:
S corporation, partnership, MMLLC, LLC elected to be treated as a corporation, foreign trust: File by the 15th day of the 3rd month after the fiscal year ends (e.g., March 15 for calendar-year entities, extending the filing deadline to September 15).
C corporation, U.S. trust: File by the 15th day of the 4th month after the fiscal year ends (e.g., April 15 for calendar-year C corps, extending the filing deadline to October 15).
How to request it through your TFX account: Go to Extensions, click Request extension, select Non-personal, choose the entity, and click Submit. See the detailed instructions below.
Cost: $100 per entity.
How to request a personal extension (federal, state)
From January 30 to April 13 (U.S. residents and non-U.S. residents with state filing requirements) or June 13 (non-U.S. residents with only federal filing requirements), you can request TFX to file federal and state personal extensions on your behalf, which will move your filing deadline to October 15.
❗ Important notes:
An extension does not extend the deadline to pay any taxes owed. The IRS starts accruing interest and penalties on unpaid taxes from April 15, even if you live abroad.
Filing deadlines change annually — always check the Filing deadlines article for the most up-to-date information.
TFX can only process the personal extension if your paid request was submitted at least 2 days before the deadline.
You cannot submit an extension request to the IRS without a valid Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). If you do not have an SSN or ITIN, apply for one as soon as possible:
To request a personal extension, follow these steps:
Click the Request extension button on the Home page of your TFX account or within the Extensions section.
Select Personal from a drop-down list and click Confirm and continue.
Read all the information carefully, provide answers to questions, indicate whether you need a state extension, and click Submit.
Once submitted, the system verifies whether your name, your spouse's name, and your SSNs match IRS and Social Security Administration records. If errors occur, you will be prompted to update the information.
Once successfully submitted, the system generates a $50 retainer bill (which remains as a credit in your account).
Your payment authorizes TFX to proceed with filing your extension request.
How to request a non-personal extension for businesses
The filing deadline for calendar-year partnerships, multi-member LLCs, S-corporations, and trusts is typically March 15 (and April 15 for C-corporations) unless they operate on a fiscal year. Anytime throughout the year, you can request TFX to file a non-personal extension (Form 7004) on behalf of your business. It will grant you a six-month extension to file your business tax return.
❗ Important note:
An extension does not extend the deadline to pay any taxes owed.
Filing deadlines change annually — always check the Filing deadlines article for the most up-to-date information.
TFX can only process the non-personal extension if your paid request was submitted at least 2 days before the respective deadline.
Contact our Customer Success (CS) team if you have any questions.
To request a non-personal extension for your business entity through your TFX account, follow these steps:
Click the Request extension button on the Home page of your TFX account or within the Extensions section.
Select Non-personal from a drop-down list and either:
Select +Create new entity, click Confirm and continue, and create a new entity.
Or select the entity already created and click Confirm and continue.
Provide answers to questions and click Submit.
Once submitted, the system generates a $100 bill.
Your payment authorizes TFX to proceed with filing your extension request.
👉 Notes:
TFX can file non-personal extensions for non-U.S. corporations (U.S. owner) and non-U.S. partnerships if the entity generates income from the U.S. or operates within the U.S. and possesses a U.S. tax ID (EIN).
Unlike personal extensions, which can only be requested at certain times of the year, non-personal extensions can be requested anytime throughout the year. However, it may not be possible to file it yet. For example, if you request an extension for your U.S. corporation in November, it is impossible to file it until after the new year. In this case, you will receive an email notification from us, and you will see the notice of delay on the Home page of your TFX account:
and on the Extensions page:
How to request an additional federal personal (Dec 15) extension
From June 30 to October 13, non-U.S. residents or U.S. residents with foreign income who already filed a federal personal extension (Form 4868) can request an additional federal personal extension (i.e., "Dec 15 extension") through their TFX accounts. This "Dec 15 extension" moves the federal filing deadline to December 15 and is submitted as a physical letter mailed to the IRS.
❗ Important note:
An extension does not extend the deadline to pay any taxes owed.
Filing deadlines change annually — always check the Filing deadlines article for the most up-to-date information.
TFX can only process the additional federal personal extension if your paid request was submitted at least 2 days before October 15.
Contact our Customer Success (CS) team if you have any questions.
To request an additional federal personal extension through your TFX account, follow these steps:
Click the Request Dec 15 extension button on the Home page of your TFX account.
Or go to Extensions and click the Request extension button, select Personal Dec 15 (additional request) from the drop-down list, then click Confirm and continue.
Carefully review the information and answer all questions.
If you want TFX to mail the extension request letter for you, select "Yes - I want TFX to mail it for me ($50)" to the question: "Do you want to mail it yourself, or do you want TFX to mail it for you ($50)?"
Click Submit.
After submission, the system may issue a bill based on several conditions:
Signed Engagement Letter: No payment is required as the EL has already been prepaid. However, if you opt for TFX to mail the extension, a $50 bill will be issued, which will be deducted from your account credit.
Unsigned Engagement Letter: As you have not yet signed the engagement, when you order the Dec 15 extension service, we require prepayment for tax preparation services. The system will issue a $350 retainer bill, which may be reduced by any available credit on your account.
Do not worry, your funds will remain as credit that can be used for other TFX services. For example, if you opt for TFX to mail the Dec 15 extension, $50 will be deducted from your account credit.
Once the bill is paid (if one is issued):
If you choose the self-mailing option: A PDF file of the Dec 15 extension request letter will be generated. You can download and print it from the Home page of your TFX account.
If you choose TFX to mail the extension: Your request will be confirmed, and TFX will mail your extension request to the IRS. You can download and read it from the Home page of your TFX account.
❗ Important notes:
You must have the acceptance confirmation of the federal personal extension (Form 4868). Otherwise, the IRS will not grant you an additional extension.
The IRS does not confirm receipt of the additional federal personal extension request, and approval is not guaranteed.
If the additional federal personal extension request remains unpaid by October 15th, the system auto-deletes the unpaid bill, and you will no longer be able to modify the request. Please contact our Customer Success (CS) team to cancel it.
If your tax documents are prepared earlier than expected and the additional federal personal extension is no longer needed, our CS team can cancel the request if the letter hasn't been mailed yet.
How to change the additional extension delivery method
If you initially chose "I will mail it myself" when submitting the additional Dec 15 extension request, you can change the delivery method:
Click the Ask TFX to mail ($50) link on the Home page.
Or navigate to the Extensions page and click the Ask TFX to mail ($50) link.
Click the Change button.
Once it is paid, your request will be forwarded to our team, and we will mail the Dec 15 extension request letter.
If you initially chose "I want TFX to mail it for me ($50)" and paid the $50 bill for the TFX mailing service, you can change the delivery method if you no longer want TFX to mail the Dec 15 extension request letter and TFX has not yet mailed it:
Contact our Customer Success team and let them know whether you will mail it with regular mail or using a courier service (FedEx/DHL/UPS).
They will change the delivery method, and the system will automatically credit the paid amount ($50) to your TFX account.
How to pay for extension requests
Once the extension request is submitted, the system automatically generates a bill or a retainer bill (funds remain as credit in your account). Your payment of these bills authorizes us to proceed with filing the extension request. If you have made a $350 upfront partial payment, and it still appears as available credit, you will not be required to pay the retainer fee.
To pay for an extension:
Go to Bills & Payments and review your bills.
If you have one retainer bill on the list, click Pay Outstanding Bills.
If you have several bills pending, select the Pay Selected radio button, check the box next to a retainer bill you want to pay, and click Pay Outstanding Bills.
2. Enter your billing information and click Pay to proceed with the payment.
👉 Notes:
All payments are made through a secure processing service. We don’t store your payment details.
Contact our Customer Success team to get other payment options if you cannot pay with your credit/debit card.
TFX can only process an extension request if we receive payment at least 2 days before the deadline. Anything after that (within 24 hours of the extension request deadline) is too close to the deadline to ensure it will be processed.
How to cancel extension requests
If you submitted the extension request but have not yet paid the retainer fee, we have not started processing your order. In this case, you may cancel your extension request at any time. To do it, follow these steps:
On the Home page of your TFX account, click the Delete extension request link.
Or go to Extensions and click the trash bin 🗑 button.
How to view submitted extension requests
To see all your extension requests, go to Extensions in your TFX account. Here you can see the table with all types of requested extensions for all years:
Type - The extension type. Legal entity types are displayed for non-personal extensions.
Requested - The date the extension was requested.
Paid - The date the extension was paid or you can pay for it by clicking the Pay Bill button.
Filed - The date the Acceptance confirmation document was uploaded.
Expiration - The date until which the deadline for filing tax documents has been extended according to the prepared extension.
Confirm / Delivery info - Links to download the Acceptance confirmation document and to track delivery of a Dec 15 extension request letter to the IRS if you requested us to mail it for you.
Available actions:
Click the eye 👁 button to view the information provided by you.
Click the bin 🗑 button to cancel your order if you have not yet paid the retainer bill.
Click the edit 🖊 button to correct errors.
