This article is reprinted from Bloomberg:

(Bloomberg) -- The Internal Revenue Service announced Wednesday that it will

wipe out late fees for taxpayers who struggled to file their tax returns on time

during the pandemic.

The IRS estimates that nearly 1.6 million taxpayers will receive more than $1.2

billion worth of penalty relief. The tax agency will automatically issue the refunds

or credits for most of the fees by the end of September.

“Throughout the pandemic, the IRS has worked hard to support the nation and

provide relief to people in many different ways,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig

said in a statement Wednesday. “The penalty relief issued today is yet another

way the agency is supporting people during this unprecedented time. This

penalty relief will be automatic for people or businesses who qualify; there’s no

need to call.”

Tax returns for 2019 and 2020, which were due to the IRS in the 2020 and 2021,

will be eligible for the relief. Taxpayers must file any late returns by Sept. 30,

2022, to get the late fees forgiven.

Penalties for failing to file a tax return can be as much as 25% of the unpaid

levies. The IRS will not forgive penalties for failing to pay or in situations where

fraudulent returns were filed, the agency said.

Forgiving the penalties for late-filed returns is the latest move by the IRS to ease

tax compliance. The agency extended the tax filing deadline in both 2020 and

2021 to give taxpayers more time to submit their returns and pay what they owe.

The IRS has been criticized that it hasn’t been doing enough to help taxpayers

meet their filing obligations. Long wait times and not enough customer service

representatives has made it difficult to get any questions answered by the IRS.

The IRS has also been criticized for a large backlog of paper returns, which

means that millions of taxpayers have filed and paid taxes that the agency has

been unable to process for weeks or months. The IRS also paused sending

notices and automated collections to individuals earlier this year after pressure

from Congress to stop those mailings until the backlog is reduced.

The IRS said that abating the penalties from tax seasons affected by the

pandemic will help them clear the backlog of returns that still need to be

processed.