IRS Help for Active Duty, Guard and Reserve Members
Combat zone extensions, SCRA deferral and the 6% interest cap, deployment powers of attorney, and IRS levies on military pay.
Combat Zone Tax Deadline Extensions: How the 180-Day Rule Really Works
How IRC 7508 extends filing, payment and refund deadlines for combat zone and contingency operation service, with the two-step math the IRS uses.
Active DutyThe IRS Combat Zone Freeze: What It Stops, What It Does Not, and What to Do About an Audit Letter
What the IRS -C freeze does to audits, levies, liens and notices while you serve in a combat zone, and how to respond if an audit letter arrives anyway.
Active DutyCombat Zone Pay Exclusion Errors: When Your W-2 Gets It Wrong
How the IRC 112 combat pay exclusion works for enlisted members and officers, the 2025 officer cap, and how to fix a W-2 that taxed pay it should not have.
Active DutyHow to Prove Combat Zone Status to the IRS
What proof the IRS accepts for combat zone postponement under IRC 7508, when a spouse or attorney statement works, and how to answer Letter 2761C.
Active DutyIRS Deadlines for Hospitalized Servicemembers: The Qualified Hospitalization Rule
How IRC 7508 extends tax deadlines during hospitalization for combat zone injuries, the 5-year cap for U.S. hospital stays, and the rules for spouses.
Active DutyStationed Overseas but Not in a Combat Zone? The Automatic 2-Month Extension
Servicemembers on duty outside the U.S. and Puerto Rico get an automatic 2-month filing extension under Treas. Reg. 1.6081-5. Here is how to use it safely.
Active DutySCRA Tax Deferral: How to Ask the IRS to Pause Collection During Military Service
How the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets you defer IRS collection of income tax during service plus 180 days, who qualifies, and what to send.
Active DutyThe SCRA 6% Interest Cap on IRS Debt: Who Gets It and How to Claim It
IRS debt incurred before active duty can be capped at 6% interest during service under 50 U.S.C. 3937. Who qualifies, the 180-day deadline and how to claim it.
Active DutyHandling IRS Problems While Deployed: Military POAs, Form 2848 and Signing for a Spouse
How a spouse or family member can deal with the IRS for a deployed servicemember: military POA rules in the IRM, Form 2848, and signing a joint return.
Active DutyIRS Levy on Active Duty Military Pay: How It Works and How to Stop It
How the IRS levies active duty pay through DFAS with Form 668-W, what allowances it reaches, the combat zone and SCRA bars, and how to get a levy released.
Active DutyTax Forgiveness When a Servicemember Dies in a Combat Zone: A Guide for Survivors
How IRC 692 forgives income tax when a servicemember dies in a combat zone or from wounds there, which years are covered, and how a survivor files the claim.
Active DutyUnfiled Tax Returns for Servicemembers and Veterans: How to Get Current
Behind on returns after deployments, PCS moves or separation? How the IRS treats non-filers, the six-year policy, and how combat zone rules change the math.