Internal Revenue Service Offers Tax Relief as State of Emergency Declared in South Georgia

(GEORGIA) — Governor Brian P. Kemp, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Georgia Department of Revenue announced Tax Relief on May 8, 2026 for people and businesses affected by the Georgia Highway 82 and Pineland Road wildfires in south Georgia.

The relief applies to taxpayers in Clinch, Echols, and Brantley counties, where wildfires and straight-line winds began on April 18, 2026. Kemp declared a state of emergency on April 22, 2026 for 91 counties, including those three, citing drought conditions and dry fuel.

Federal relief gives affected individuals, households, and businesses until August 20, 2026 to file various federal tax returns and make payments that were originally due on or after April 18, 2026. The Internal Revenue Service said the extension also covers any counties added later to the disaster area.

The federal announcement, identified as GA-2026-03 and dated May 6, 2026, covers individual income tax returns and payments, along with certain business filings. Quarterly payroll and excise tax returns due on April 30, 2026 and July 31, 2026 also fall under the extension.

Payroll and excise tax deposit penalties will be abated for deposits due on or after April 18, 2026 and before May 4, 2026, as long as the deposits were made by May 4, 2026. That part of the relief applies to a narrower set of deadlines than the broader filing extension.

Federal help reaches beyond residents and businesses physically located in the three counties. It also covers taxpayers outside the area whose records are in the disaster zone, relief workers assisting through recognized government or philanthropic organizations, and people who were visiting the area and were injured or killed.

Qualified wildfire relief payments received in 2026 may be excluded from gross income if they cover uninsured losses, expenses, or damages. Those payments can include personal, family, living, or funeral expenses, home repair or rehabilitation, replacement of contents, lost wages not paid by an employer, and costs tied to personal injury, death, or emotional distress.

Affected taxpayers also can claim disaster-related casualty losses on a federal return for either 2025 or 2026. The option allows filers to choose the year that best fits their tax position, as long as the 2025 return is filed by August 20, 2026.

Georgia’s separate relief extends certain state deadlines by up to 120 days. Taxpayers with valid extensions for 2025 individual or business returns that would have been due on October 15, 2026 now have until February 12, 2027 to file.

Calendar-year partnerships and S corporations with 2025 extensions expiring on October 15, 2026 also now have until February 12, 2027. Calendar-year corporations and tax-exempt organizations with extensions expiring on November 16, 2026 now have until March 16, 2027.

Georgia did not extend every obligation. Payments that were due on April 15, 2026 are not eligible for an extension, and the state said the relief does not apply to W-2 and 1099 series information returns, `Forms 1042-S`, employment or excise tax deposits, International Fuel Tax Agreement interest, or pre-disaster installment payments.

Paper filers sending state forms to the Department of Revenue must write “Georgia Wildfires – Clinch, Echols, Brantley” across the top of the forms. That notation helps the state identify returns tied to the wildfire relief.

David Burge, Georgia Revenue Commissioner, said the state aimed to reduce one source of pressure for people dealing with fire damage and disruption. “Our priority is making sure impacted Georgians have one less thing to worry about as they recover from these wildfires. These extensions provide additional time and flexibility for affected individuals and businesses to meet their tax obligations.”

The federal and state actions arrived after weeks of fire activity in a region already under stress from dry conditions. Kemp’s April 22, 2026 emergency declaration covered a broad swath of Georgia, but the announced tax measures focus on the counties tied directly to the Georgia Highway 82 and Pineland Road wildfires, while allowing for later additions.

County eligibility remains important because the IRS said the relief applies to Clinch, Echols, and Brantley counties and to any counties added later. Taxpayers outside those counties who still face wildfire-related disruption because their records are inside the disaster area are also eligible under the federal rules.

People and businesses dealing with filing questions may need to separate federal and state deadlines carefully. The Internal Revenue Service moved a range of federal filing and payment dates to August 20, 2026, while Georgia pushed certain extension-based filing deadlines into 2027 but left some payment obligations and information returns untouched.

That split matters most for taxpayers who usually treat federal and state filing calendars as parallel. A business could qualify for extra time on a federal return and still face a different state timetable, especially if its Georgia obligation involved an excluded deposit or an amount that was due on April 15, 2026.

The wildfire relief rules also reach some people who may not immediately think they qualify. Relief workers from recognized organizations and visitors injured in the disaster area can fall within the federal provisions, and households receiving qualified wildfire relief payments in 2026 may be able to keep those amounts out of gross income if the payments covered uninsured losses.

Taxpayers outside the disaster area who were affected by the fires should contact the IRS or consult a tax advisor. Current eligible counties are listed on the IRS Tax Relief in Disaster Situations page, and those listings can change if additional counties are added.

The tax measures leave fire-hit residents and businesses with more time, but not a blank slate. Federal returns and payments that fell due on or after April 18, 2026 now point to August 20, 2026; several Georgia extension deadlines now stretch to February 12, 2027 or March 16, 2027, depending on the filer.