Two federal courts ruled the IRS had no legal authority to assess penalties and interest during COVID. If the IRS assessed penalties or interest on your returns between 2020 and 2023, you may be owed $1,000 - $10,000+ back.
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Same engine that has qualified thousands of taxpayers. No SSN, no credit card — just a quick estimate of what the IRS may owe you.
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Tax years you may have been assessed IRS penalties & interest
Approximate amount you were assessed in penalties & interest
$4.2M+
Estimated for taxpayers
$2,400
Avg. estimate
60 sec
To complete
$400 – $1,900
Estimate only. Actual refund determined by the IRS based on your specific tax situation and Form 843 filing.
Start My Full Eligibility Check →Two independent federal courts found the IRS had no legal authority to charge these penalties and interest.
When the pandemic hit, the IRS declared a nationwide disaster — which legally paused filing deadlines. But their systems kept issuing late-filing and late-payment penalties and interest as if nothing had changed.
In two separate cases, federal judges ruled that the IRS had no legal authority to assess these penalties and interest during an active disaster declaration. The IRS has already refunded $1.2 billion to some affected taxpayers, but millions more were charged penalties and interest under the same circumstances and haven't received anything.
A formal claim is required to request your refund. That's what PenaltyBack helps you do.
U.S. Tax Court — IRS penalties ruled invalid during disaster declaration
Federal court — independently confirmed IRS lacked authority to assess penalties
Led by Kenneth Dettman, CPA — former Tax Partner at Alvarez & Marsal, Forbes Business Council member, who ran A&M's COVID-19 stimulus task force (2020–2021).
If the IRS assessed penalties or interest on your returns between 2020 and 2023, federal courts say you're owed that money back.
Check My Eligibility — FreeHow we got here — and why you should act now.
“I led the COVID stimulus task force at Alvarez & Marsal. When the courts ruled the IRS overstepped, I built PenaltyBack so taxpayers could actually get that money back.”
Real people who discovered the IRS owed them money.
Free to check if you qualify. If you're owed a refund, we charge a percentage of the amount — and only if you get paid.
Check if I qualify — free →Everything you need to know before getting started.
If the IRS assessed penalties or interest on your returns between 2020 and 2023, federal courts say you're owed that money back. It takes 2 minutes to check — and it's completely free.