Tax Year 2026
What happens if I don’t file my taxes?
Penalties — if you owe.
Owe tax and the costs stack monthly. Owed a refund? No penalty — you just lose the refund after 3 years.
If You Owe
Failure-to-file penalty5%/month, up to 25%
Failure-to-pay penalty0.5%/month
InterestAccrues on top, daily
If You’re Owed a Refund
No penalty at all — penalties are a percentage of unpaid tax, and yours is $0. But wait more than 3 years and the refund is forfeited permanently.
The Substitute Return
Ignore the IRS long enough and they file for you — using worst-case assumptions, no deductions, no credits — then bill you for the result. Filing your own return, even years late, replaces it.
What About Jail?
Criminal charges are rare and target willful evasion, not people who fell behind. The fix is unglamorous: file, even late. Penalties stop growing the day you do.