Recently, The Washington Post published a major tax column reminding all U.S. taxpayers to pay attention to a date that seems minor but is actually critical — July 10. For many Chinese friends living in Austin, April 15 is usually the default "tax day" in everyone's mind; as long as you filed your return or requested an extension by then, it seems safe to breathe a sigh of relief. But in reality, if you meet certain conditions, July 10 directly affects whether you can recover penalties and interest that the IRS charged you during the pandemic. As a locally rooted Austin Chinese CPA firm, we'd like to take this opportunity to walk you through the tax logic behind this news and its practical impact on you.
Editor's Note (updated July 16, 2026): This article was originally published on July 8, 2026. The July 10 deadline referenced in the article pertains to protective refund claims (Form 843) related to Kwong v. United States, which expired on July 10, 2026, while the IRS's appeal is still pending. An earlier version of this article mistakenly described this deadline as disaster-area filing relief or a "non-filer refund"; this has now been corrected.
What Is the July 10 Deadline?
Under normal circumstances, the federal tax filing deadline is April 15; if you request an Automatic Extension, you can push the filing deadline to October 15. This July 10 deadline, however, has nothing to do with regular filing: it stems from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims' November 2025 ruling in Kwong v. United States. The court held that, under Internal Revenue Code Section 7508A(d), the nationwide disaster declaration for COVID-19 automatically tolled relevant tax deadlines between January 20, 2020, and July 10, 2023, including deadlines for claiming refunds of penalties and interest. Based on this ruling, taxpayers who were charged late-filing penalties, late-payment penalties, and interest by the IRS during the pandemic could file Form 843 (noting "Kwong v. United States" at the top of the form) as a protective refund claim before July 10, 2026. Because the IRS has appealed this ruling, whether refunds are ultimately paid depends on the outcome of the appeal.
Why Is "Getting Your Refund Back" So Urgent?
Many Chinese clients mistakenly assume the IRS will proactively send them money. The opposite is true: whether it's overpaid tax or penalties that shouldn't have been charged, refund claims must be actively initiated by the taxpayer and are subject to strict statutory deadlines. In the case of Kwong, July 10 was the final point to preserve your rights — taxpayers who filed a protective claim before that date retain their rights regardless of when the appeal outcome is announced; those who missed the deadline may be unable to benefit even if the court later upholds a ruling in taxpayers' favor. A similar deadline logic applies to ordinary tax refunds: the law states that if you don't file a federal tax return within three years, the refund you would otherwise have been entitled to reverts to the U.S. Treasury. If you're not familiar with the filing process, you can refer to the explanations in our Chinese Tax Filing Guide — don't let money that's rightfully yours sit unclaimed in the government's account.
Common Misconceptions Among Austin Chinese Tax Clients
In the course of handling Austin Chinese tax filing cases, we've found that many clients have a tendency to procrastinate. Some clients avoid filing because they assume they'll owe additional tax. Others keep putting it off because reporting foreign assets (such as FBAR) seems too complicated. In reality, whether you owe tax or are due a refund, filing on time is the best way to protect your own interests. If you expect to owe tax, delaying your filing will only generate interest and penalties; if you're due a refund, delaying your filing simply means letting the IRS hold your money interest-free. For those of you with foreign accounts, don't assume that simply not reporting will hide your assets — doing so can lead to serious compliance risks. We recommend reading our FBAR Filing Guide to learn how to file in compliance with the law.
Choosing Between the Standard Deduction and Itemized Deductions
When reviewing your tax situation, understanding your deductions is equally important. In recent years, tax reform has increased the Standard Deduction, meaning that many taxpayers who use Itemized Deductions no longer come out ahead. For Chinese homeowners in Austin, the cap on state and local tax deductions (the SALT Cap) remains a challenge. It's well worth having a professional CPA run the numbers for you: we can calculate whether you're better off taking the standard deduction or itemizing items such as charitable contributions and mortgage interest to lower your tax liability. This directly determines whether you end up with a nice refund check or have to write a check to the IRS.
How to Check Whether You're Affected by This Deadline
First, recall or verify whether you were charged penalties and interest by the IRS during the pandemic for filing or paying late — the most direct way to check is to log into your IRS Online Account and review your payment history. Second, if you already filed a Form 843 protective claim before July 10, keep your proof of submission and wait for the appeal outcome; if you haven't filed one, we recommend consulting a professional tax advisor to review your specific situation before deciding on next steps. Third, check whether you have any unfiled tax returns still within the three-year refund claim period, so you don't let new refund rights expire. Our firm regularly updates important information like this in our Tax Insights column to help everyone stay compliant.
YZ CPA Note
Whether or not the July 10 deadline directly applies to your situation, this news serves as a wake-up call: tax rights and tax compliance are not things that can be put off indefinitely. This is especially true for Chinese friends with foreign assets, complex investment income, or cross-border backgrounds — proactively filing and exercising your statutory rights in a timely manner is far safer than passively waiting for a letter from the IRS. The next time you encounter a time-limited right like this, be sure to seek professional help before the deadline, so you don't lose refund benefits that rightfully belong to you due to a momentary oversight.
For professional tax assistance, please visit our YZ CPA Services page or contact us.