06/17/2026
KWONG RELIEF:
The reason many tax professionals are recommending a protective claim by July 10, 2026 for potential Kwong relief is to preserve a taxpayer's right to a refund before the statute of limitations expires.
Under the interpretation of the court's decision in the historical event Kwong v. Commissioner, certain filing and payment deadlines may have been postponed from January 20, 2020, through July 10, 2023. If that interpretation applies, some taxpayers may be entitled to refunds of:
Failure-to-file penalties
Failure-to-pay penalties
Interest associated with those penalties
Certain estimated tax penalties
The concern is the refund statute under IRC §6511. Generally, a claim for refund must be filed within:
3 years from the date the return was filed, or
2 years from the date the tax was paid,
whichever is later.
Many payments, offsets, and penalty assessments connected to the postponed period could become barred after July 10, 2026, depending on how the postponement period is ultimately applied. Filing a protective claim before that date establishes the taxpayer's claim while the legal and administrative issues continue to develop