The Pandemic Is Over — Time to Clear Up Old Tax Matters
Friends, hasn't it felt like the pandemic years flew by? Many of us have forgotten the details of some things, especially the complicated tax issues from back then. At YZ CPA LLC, we've found that many of our Chinese clients in Austin still have quite a few questions about pandemic-era refunds and back taxes: some want to know whether they missed a refund they were owed, while others still have unresolved back taxes from financial hardship during the pandemic. Today, from the perspective of an Austin-based Chinese tax client, let's take a thorough look at two topics: "pandemic refunds" and "IRS back taxes."
Editor's Note (updated July 16, 2026): This article was originally written while pandemic-era refunds could still be claimed. The filing deadline for 2020 refunds actually passed on May 17, 2024, and for 2021 refunds on April 15, 2025. The refund section below has been revised into a retrospective discussion. The section on handling back taxes is unaffected and still applies.
Why Might the IRS Owe You Money?
This may sound too good to be true, but there's a clear policy basis behind it. During the special period of the pandemic, the U.S. government rolled out several important tax relief measures, and many people may not have fully benefited from them for various reasons. The main ones are as follows:
First is the "Recovery Rebate Credit." Many people may assume they already received the full amount of stimulus payments, but that isn't necessarily the case. Your final reported income, changes in household members, and other factors for 2020 and 2021 could mean the stimulus amount you were actually entitled to was higher than what you received in advance payments. That difference needed to be claimed by filing a tax return at the time — this is what's known as the Recovery Rebate Credit.
Second, there were several tax credits that were significantly expanded, such as the Child Tax Credit, the Earned Income Tax Credit, and the Child and Dependent Care Credit. These credits became especially generous in 2021. We've worked with some clients whose income was low enough that they normally wouldn't need to file a return, but in order to claim these credits, they actually should have filed. If they didn't file that year, or didn't correctly claim these credits when filing, they may have missed out on a substantial amount of money.
Please note that there is a clear statute of limitations for claiming these refunds. The statutory deadline for claiming a refund is generally three years after the return's due date. For the 2020 tax return, this deadline already expired on May 17, 2024; for 2021, it expired on April 15, 2025. In other words, these two pandemic-era refunds can no longer be claimed at this point.
How to Check Whether You Missed This Money Back Then
Although the filing window has closed, reviewing your historical records is still meaningful — it can help confirm whether you correctly claimed everything you were owed at the time, and it can also remind you not to miss other refunds that are still within their filing deadline. You can look back through your bank records from that period to confirm how much stimulus payment you received, then review your household and income situation for 2020 and 2021 against your tax returns from those years to see whether you correctly claimed each credit.
It should be noted that the amended return (Form 1040-X) route for claiming 2020 and 2021 pandemic-era refunds is no longer available now that the windows have closed. However, if you discover missed refunds for other tax years that are still within the three-year statutory deadline, the amended return process still applies. Unlike a regular annual tax filing, this requires precisely identifying the errors on the original return and calculating the correct refund amount in detail — any mistake in either step can cause significant delays to your refund. You can refer to our Chinese Tax Filing Guide for more details, or consult a professional accountant.
After submitting an amended return, you'll need to be patient, as processing times are typically long. You can use the "Where's My Amended Return?" tool on the IRS website to track its progress.
Flipping It Around: What If You Owe the IRS Back Taxes?
Having covered the "IRS owes you" side, let's now talk about the "you owe the IRS" side. The pandemic hit many people's income hard, and some of you may not have been able to pay your taxes on time and in full due to tight finances — and some may still have unresolved tax issues to this day.
The first thing we want to emphasize is: never avoid or ignore notices from the IRS. The IRS has very strong collection powers, and ignoring the problem will only let penalties and interest keep piling up, making the situation worse. The right approach is to face it head-on and actively seek a solution.
The IRS actually offers several ways to handle back taxes. The most common is an installment agreement, which lets you pay off your tax debt gradually by making a fixed monthly payment. If your financial situation is truly difficult and neither paying in full nor an installment plan is feasible, you might consider an Offer in Compromise (OIC), where you negotiate with the IRS to settle your tax debt for less than the full amount in a single payment. However, the bar for an OIC is high, and approval is difficult to obtain. In extreme hardship cases, you may also apply for Currently Not Collectible status, which allows the IRS to temporarily pause collection efforts until your financial situation improves. As your trusted Chinese-speaking CPA in Austin, we understand the urgency of resolving tax issues and are ready to help you find the solution that best fits your situation.
YZ CPA Note
Whether you want to figure out "did I miss a refund back then," or you're dealing with "back taxes left over from the past," now is a good time to sort out your pandemic-era tax situation. Here are a few key pieces of advice we've distilled for you:
1. Understand the deadlines and focus on the present: The filing deadlines for 2020 and 2021 pandemic-era refunds expired on May 17, 2024 and April 15, 2025, respectively, and can no longer be claimed. But there's no such thing as an "expiration date" for back taxes — the sooner you address them, the lower the cost in penalties and interest.
2. Leave professional matters to professionals: Filing an amended return or dealing with back taxes is far more complex than a regular tax filing. A small calculation error or an omission on a form can cause delays of months or even years. Getting help from a professional accountant can save you significant time and effort and ensure accurate results. You're welcome to browse our Tax Insights section for more information at any time.
3. Face the problem and communicate proactively: If you owe back taxes, avoidance is the worst option. Proactively communicating with the IRS — or having your accountant communicate on your behalf — to pursue a payment plan or other resolution is the fundamental way to solve the problem.
4. Keep all your records: Whether it's a refund or back taxes, be sure to keep all relevant documents, including bank statements, IRS notices, and copies of every form you've submitted. Good recordkeeping is your strongest evidence.
In short, the pandemic left many marks on our lives, and taxes are no exception. Taking the time to sort out these old matters — whether verifying a past refund or resolving a back tax burden — is a responsible step toward your future financial health.
If you need professional tax assistance, please visit the YZ CPA Services page or Contact Us.