The United States government shuts down, but what does this mean for the U.S. taxpayers?
The United States federal government officially shut down as of 12:01 am on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. The good news is that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does have a plan for operating during the government shutdown. The bad news is that the plan only involves keeping the agency open and operating at normal capacity for the first five days of the shutdown.
The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has urged the IRS to keep all IRS agents working during the entire shutdown, citing the negative impacts the shutdown of the agency would cause for taxpayers nationwide.
However, the IRS has indicated that they will not be giving taxpayers any extensions of the following deadlines despite the shutdown: 1.) Extended 2024 individual tax returns are still due by October 15, 2025; 2.) Tax-exempt organization returns are still due November 17, 2025; and 3.) Expatriate tax returns are still due by December 15, 2025.
Additionally, all taxpayers should assume that the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) center will be negatively impacted by the government shutdown as well. The Taxpayer Advocate Service is critical for taxpayers facing serious issues in dealing with IRS disputes.
If you have any questions regarding the contents of this legal advisory or to seek counsel from our Taxation group, please reach out to request a consultation or call us at 216-696-1422.
