a-01-117.pdf

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# Part IV - Items of General Interest

# Disaster Relief for Taxpayers with an Interest in Passthrough Entities

Announcement 2001-117

Notice 2001-61 provided filing and paying extensions and postponements for
taxpayers affected by the September 11, 2001, Terrorist Attack. An affected taxpayer
for purposes of Notice 2001-61 includes, among others, business entities whose
principal place of business is located in a covered disaster area, and business entities
whose principal place of business is not located in a covered disaster area but whose
records necessary to meet a filing or paying deadline are located in a covered disaster
area. Affected taxpayers also include trusts and estates whose tax records necessary
to meet a filing or paying deadline are located in a covered disaster area. The IRS
received a number of inquiries about the scope of Notice 2001-61 with respect to the
partners, shareholders and beneficiaries of partnerships, S corporations, trusts and
estates (passthrough entities). In response to those inquiries, Notice 2001-68 noted
that the deadline for filing of income tax returns of the partners, shareholders, or
beneficiaries of passthrough entities is not postponed or extended solely because the
passthrough entity is an affected taxpayer. Notice 2001-68 also noted the availability of
other types of relief for those owners of passthrough entities.

Some taxpayer representatives have informed the IRS that they interpreted
Notice 2001-61 as including owners of passthrough entities as affected taxpayers
regardless of whether the owners themselves were otherwise affected. Those taxpayer

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representatives believed that if the records of the passthrough entity necessary to
prepare Schedule K-1s were located in a covered disaster area, then the owners who
would receive copies of the Schedule K-1s for use in preparing their own returns had
records in a covered disaster area within the meaning of Notice 2001-61. Some
taxpayers who relied on the advice of these taxpayer representatives missed certain tax
deadlines between September 11, 2001 and November 2, 2001, when the IRS issued
Notice 2001-68.

Although Notice 2001-61 did not grant the relief that some taxpayer
representatives believed it did, the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the
September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks justify granting limited additional relief to those
taxpayers who missed deadlines in reliance on the interpretation of Notice 2001-61
described above. Accordingly, the IRS grants the following relief to partners,
shareholders, or beneficiaries of passthrough entities that had income tax returns due
(either originally or on extension) on or after September 11, 2001, and on or before
November 2, 2001 (the date the IRS released Notice 2001-68), but did not file the
return because the taxpayer believed that the IRS had granted a 120 day
postponement solely by virtue of the taxpayer's interest in an affected entity. Those
taxpayers will have until December 15, 2001, to file a timely return (and make any
election required to be made with a timely filed return). The IRS will waive any failure to
file penalty if the taxpayer files the return by December 15, 2001. The IRS will waive
any failure to pay penalty that accrues from September 11, 2001, through December
15, 2001, as long as the taxpayer pays any balance due by December 15, 2001.
Taxpayers that qualify for relief under this notice should mark "Extended pursuant to
Announcement 2001-117" in red ink on the top of their returns or other documents filed
with the IRS.

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This announcement was drafted by the Office of Associate Chief Counsel,
Procedure and Administration (Administrative Provisions and Judicial Practice Division).
For further information regarding this notice you may call (202) 622-4940 (not a toll-free
call).