Tax Extension Center continues its series of The Top 100 Reasons to File a Tax Extension. This series is intended to show taxpayers that a tax extension is valuable because it saves individuals and/or their businesses time, stress, and even money.

Reason #15: taxpayers who file a tax extension have their own special tax deadline: October 15.

Think about it…while everyone else is scrambling around on April 15 like it’s the end of the world, you can relax because your tax deadline is completely different and seemingly far away in the future. Thanks to a tax extension, you get an extra six months to file, making your tax deadline October 15.

A tax deadline that’s different from everyone else is special, but it’s hardly unique. Nearly 15 million individuals and businesses file a tax extension each year.

Whether you are new to tax extensions or not, remember that filing a tax extension does not give you more time to pay what you owe the government or face the possibility of penalties and interest. You still need to make your payment by midnight on April 15.

Have you ever filed an IRS extension? Thinking about filing one this year? Drop me a note in the comment section below.

With the October 15 deadline fast approaching, our support team has been busy answering one common question:

I don’t have time to finish my taxes by October 15, can I get an extension on my extension?

The answer is NO.

Unfortunately, the days of the second extension are over. The IRS only allows one 6-month extension to file form 1040.

Your only choice is to file your taxes. If your 1040 and money you owe the IRS is not filed on time, it may be subject to penalties and late fees.

If your problem is that you can’t possibly pay what you owe, I suggest you read the IRS’ recommendation on how to setup an Installment Agreement (otherwise known as a payment plan).

Between April 15 , the IRS income tax deadline, and October 15, the extended IRS income tax deadline, we often have customers ask if there is an advantage to filing income taxes now, or waiting until close to October 15. Here are few considerations to make as you decide if it’s time to get your 2008 taxes submitted:

If you expect to get a refund, the sooner you file the sooner you get your money. For those who expect to owe and have not made an estimated payment when their income tax extension was filed, the IRS is slowly but surely accumulating interest on what you owe them. However, if you did make a payment with your extension, there’s nothing to worry about.

If you extended because you had trouble finding a CPA, or your CPA was charging a last minute premium near April 15, realize that there’s another busy period for CPAs as we near the extended tax deadline (although nothing compared to the April 15 rush). You can do yourself, and your CPA, a favor by not waiting until the last minute.

The IRS generally doesn’t allow additional extensions beyond the October 15 extended deadline. So, you’ll want to make sure you are on track to get your taxes submitted by the extended deadline, or you could be faced with stiff penalties by the IRS.