Tax Extensions for Military Servicemembers
If you're a member of the US armed forces, you have some more flexible rules regarding tax payment and extensions (it's the least they can do, right?). Here are the basics regarding tax extensions for military personnel.

Tax Extensions for Servicemembers Overseas
If you're deployed overseas during tax time, you automatically get a two-month extension on your taxes, with no payments or penalties due. If you need more time than that, you can fill out IRS Form 4868 online. This is the same form that civilians use for tax extensions, and it gives you till October 15 to file your tax return.

This policy is intended for soldiers deployed in non-combat areas. If you're serving in a combat zone (or if you're moved into one from an overseas non-combat area), you get additional extensions as described below.

Tax Extensions for Servicemembers in Combat Zones
If you've served in a combat zone during the previous tax year (or are serving in one now), you're eligible for additional extensions that equal:
  • The length of time served in a combat zone before April 15
  • Any time spent continually hospitalized due to injuries sustained in a combat zone (up to five years)
  • 180 days in addition to the time calculated above
This extension covers the time you would have had to prepare your taxes if you were stateside. For example, if you deployed on March 15, you'd be granted a 210-day extension - 180 days automatically, plus the 30 days between March 15 and April 15.

During this extension period, you'll owe no payments and accrue no interest on your unpaid tax liability. This extension applies to any and all taxes you owe, from income taxes to capital gains and investment taxes.

The important thing to remember about this second tax extension is that it only applies to time served in a combat zone. The regulations can be confusing for soldiers transferred between combat and non-combat zones overseas. The combat-zone extension only takes effect when you begin your service in that zone, so if you're deployed to Germany on March 1 and moved to Iraq on March 15, then you get a 210-day extension, not a 226-day one.

Like most government rules, these are a bit complex. If you're serving overseas, we recommend that you file online for a tax extension, and give yourself as much time as possible.

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