Reps. Chu, Carey Introduce SAFE Act to Simplify Tax Filing Extension Process
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Reps. Judy Chu (CA-28) and Mike Carey (OH-15) introduced Simplify Automatic Filing Extensions (SAFE) Act, bipartisan legislation to simplify and streamline the tax filing extension process. This legislation, which Reps. Chu and Carey first introduced in 2023, was included in the discussion draft to improve IRS Administration released by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Crapo (R-ID) and Ranking Member Wyden (D-OR) last week.
Each year, millions of individuals file for a six-month extension on their federal tax return, and that number is at record highs and growing every year. However, complying with the rules for an automatic extension is burdensome for both taxpayers and for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Under current law, the Internal Revenue code requires taxpayers to pay “properly estimated” tax liability for the current year along with their extension request. If this estimated payment is inaccurate, there is a risk that the extension could be deemed inaccurate, and the taxpayer will owe penalties. Therefore, in order to comply, filers must perform time-consuming calculations of the taxes they owe by the filing deadline, just to get an extension. This often means that individuals put hours of work into their initial estimation, only to repeat the process again in six months to meet the extension deadline.
Instead of relying on the current rule of calculating a percentage of the current year tax liability, the Simplify Automatic Filing Extensions Act would allow taxpayers to automatically qualify for a filing extension without fear of penalty by paying a simple, easily-calculated amount of 125 percent of their prior year’s tax liability.
“Requiring taxpayers who need an extension to calculate their often-complicated taxes twice in a year is repetitive and a needless hassle,” said Rep. Chu. “Rep. Carey and I are partnering on this commonsense, bipartisan bill to create a simple and easy way to pay estimated taxes while filing for an extension so we can make tax filing season less burdensome for the IRS and taxpayers. Making it easier to comply with tax law will mean more taxpayers pay what they owe, and government can continue providing essential services.”
“We should remove barriers to good-faith compliance for tax filers. By simplifying the extension process and removing the fear of penalty, we can encourage more Americans to lawfully file their taxes. I’m proud to partner with Rep. Chu on this bipartisan legislation to make government work better for taxpayers,” said Rep. Carey.
“The simplification of the extension filing process has been a top priority for the AICPA for many years, and we are grateful to Representatives Chu and Carey for their consistent leadership on this important issue,” said AICPA Vice President of Tax Policy & Advocacy, Melanie Lauridsen. “As the 2025 tax season continues, millions of Americans may find they still require additional time to file. Reducing the stress and work associated with attempting to calculate a current year tax liability estimate, often with incomplete data, for the purpose of filing an extension should improve taxpayer compliance and help practitioners better manage the work during the tax filing season. The AICPA commends Representatives Chu and Carey for their attention to this issue and we strongly support this legislation.”
Click here for the full bill text.