I’ve been bashing the IRS recently, but I’ve had lots of good reasons to do so. The new signature verification policy is somewhere between stupid and useless; the IRS’s response to the current IRS scandal is poor; and customer service at the IRS has been, to put it mildly, bad. Yet it’s time to praise the IRS for something new that’s beneficial to everyone–and it works!
The IRS has an electronic payment system called EFTPS. It’s useful, and once you’re enrolled in it, it works reasonably well. But what if you want to make a payment today and you aren’t enrolled in EFTPS? You must mail a check or pay by debit or credit card. Most state tax agencies have a webpay system.
Now, the IRS does too.
Welcome IRS Direct Pay. This is the IRS’s new webpay system, and can be used to pay your tax, pay an IRS notice, or make an estimated payment. The system is only for personal use (Form 1040 and related payments). I’ve had several clients use the system, and my clients were pleased with the system.
The system does take two business days to process a payment, but it seems to work very well. Kudos to the IRS in getting this right.
