Late on Friday August 26, the IRS announced that it was extending the August 31, 2011, deadline for the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) to September 9, 2011, because of the potential impact of Hurricane Irene. The hurricane is moving up the East Coast and could hit Washington, New York and other major cities.

The OVDI is aimed at taxpayers with undisclosed foreign bank accounts and foreign entities that U.S. taxpayers have used to avoid U.S. income taxes. The short extension provided by the IRS requires taxpayers to take two steps by September 9:

• Taxpayers who have not yet requested relief and submitted any documents must send their name, address, date of birth, Social Security Number, and as much disclosure information as possible, to the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Coordinator in Philadelphia.
• Taxpayers should request a 90-day extension for submitting the complete voluntary disclosure package to the IRS’s Austin campus.

In Frequently Asked Questions and Answers posted on its website, the IRS indicated that taxpayers submitting an incomplete Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Letter must submit any missing information as quickly as possible. The Service also stated that requests for up to a 90-day extension must include a statement of those items missing, the reasons they are not included, and the steps taken to secure them. The required disclosure package includes copies of previously filed returns; complete and accurate amended returns for all tax years covered by the initiative (2003 through 2010); an agreement to extend the statute of limitations; a check to cover tax, interest and penalties; and other documents.