Penalty & interest calculator

Enter the balance and three dates; get the statutory math — both penalties, the overlap credit, interest, and the share an abatement request could remove. Runs entirely in your browser.

Statutory formulasOverlap rule includedNothing leaves your browserShows the abatable share

Estimate your failure-to-file & failure-to-pay penalties

Statutory math, computed locally in your browser — nothing is sent anywhere. Your IRS transcript is always the controlling number; this shows you what the assessment should look like and what abatement is worth.

The penalty math will appear here.

What the meters are doing

The estimate above runs the statutory structure: 5%/month filing penalty netted against the 0.5%/month payment penalty in overlap months (so the pair totals 5%), independent 25% caps on each, the installment-agreement half-rate where it applies, and daily-compounded interest at your entered rate. What it deliberately doesn't guess: your exact assessment dates and quarterly rate changes — which is why the transcript always wins arguments, and why the useful output here is the abatable share.

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Frequently asked questions

How does the IRS calculate penalties and interest together?

Three meters run at once: failure to file (5%/month to 25%, reduced by the failure-to-pay rate in overlapping months), failure to pay (0.5%/month to 25% — 0.25% on a payment plan), and interest (federal short-term rate + 3 points, compounded daily, reset quarterly) on the tax and, from the notice date, on assessed penalties.

Why doesn't this match my IRS notice exactly?

Rounding conventions, the exact assessment dates, rate changes mid-period, the 60-day minimum penalty, and interest-on-penalty accruals all shift the figure. The transcript is the authoritative ledger — this calculator shows the structure so you can sanity-check it and size an abatement request.

Which part of the total can actually be removed?

The two penalty lines — through first-time abatement or reasonable cause — plus the interest that accrued on whatever penalty is removed. Interest on the tax itself is effectively permanent until paid; only an IRS error or delay abates it.

What interest rate should I enter?

The IRS underpayment rate for individuals: federal short-term rate plus 3, announced quarterly (recent years have run 7–8%). Enter the rate for your period — or run it at two rates to bracket the answer.

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