How to extend the deadline for filing income tax returns?

The basic deadlines for filing income tax returns for the 2024 calendar year already passed on 1 April or 2 May if filed electronically. The last statutory deadline, applying to returns filed by taxpayers subject to a statutory audit or returns filed by tax advisors, is July 1.

Taxpayers who are subject to a three-month or four-month filing deadline can extend it to six months by having a tax advisor or attorney file the return for them under a power of attorney. This power of attorney does not have to be delivered to the tax authorities within the regular (shorter) deadline. So, if you have not managed to file your 2024 return within the standard deadline, you can still grant a power of attorney to a tax advisor or lawyer
and ensure the timely filing of your income tax return through them. For taxpayers who are subject to the extended six-month deadline and who are already looking with some trepidation at the 1 July deadline, the Tax Procedure Code provides certain options of how to extend their filing deadline. The tax administrator may grant an extension of up to three months based on an application for extension filed by the taxpayer before the official deadline. If the subject matter of the tax includes income taxed abroad, the tax administrator may grant an extension of up to 10 months from the end of the taxable period.

The application for extension of the deadline does not have a prescribed form or a uniform template but must include certain essential elements. An administrative fee of CZK 300 must also be paid. An essential part of the application is the statement of grounds. The deadline may be extended, for example, if the audit of financial statements or a close-out of accounts remain unfinished due to significant organisational or personnel changes. Another reason may be significant foreign aspects affecting the preparation of the income tax return, such as income subject to taxation abroad.

It is important to keep in mind that there is no entitlement to such an extension. It is therefore entirely within the tax administrator’s discretion whether and to what extent the request will be granted. Moreover, past practice shows that the approach of the tax authorities is not uniform and that it has become stricter in recent years.

Should the tax authority not grant an extension, one can still get the necessary time to thoroughly prepare one’s tax return by paying the tax on time together with the timely filing of a proper return in its best possible form, and then correcting it through an additional income tax return. By correctly combining the paid tax, the originally declared tax, and the timing of the additional return, it may even be possible to minimise any associated penalties.