The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is reminding taxpayers once again to prepare for natural disasters that could affect their tax files and destroy important papers, because winter is already well underway and many areas of the nation are in danger of being affected.

Considering the approaching holidays and the fact that most documents can be retrieved if needed, it may seem pointless to worry about taxes. However, with the Pacific and Atlantic hurricane seasons, as well as National Preparedness Month, approaching, it is a good idea to examine your digital or physical paperwork storage and determine whether it is secure enough.

Even while the IRS is allowed—and often does—to delay tax payment and filing deadlines in disaster-affected areas, you might be worried about more than just restoring your records so you can file taxes later. A number of disasters, such as storms, tornadoes, and flooding brought on by extreme weather events, have already resulted in several extensions for taxpayers this year, and 2025 won’t be any different.

The IRS points out that taxes shouldn’t be the main concern, even though the extension is quite routine and assured. After a disaster, victims may find it easier to request for assistance from the IRS and other authorities if they have access to updated documents and other information.

If the federal government deems a region a significant disaster area, disaster assistance and emergency relief may help businesses and taxpayers recover financially from the effects of a disaster.

Safekeeping documents the IRS needs

Important documents like birth certificates, Social Security cards, deeds, titles, insurance policies, and tax returns from the past several years should be kept on file, the IRS advises consumers. Keep all of these in a safe place in containers that are both waterproof and fireproof to account for the majority of incidentals.

Additionally, it’s a good idea to leave copies of them with a friend, family member, or other reliable individual in case the safe breaks or becomes inaccessible after the accident. Although it might seem excessive, you will value having access to most of those papers if you have suffered substantial material losses.

Another recommendation is to scan or take pictures of all your paper documents and store them in a safe digital location so that you can access them in the event that the originals are destroyed or lost.

The majority of deeds and personal documents ought to be accessible to the public at banks, public records offices, and other places in case nothing works and all the documents are lost.

Some may even be saved by the IRS from earlier events. It might take some time to get them, though, because any local offices were probably also impacted. Additionally, these services will probably be slower because there will be other users that need to utilize them besides you.

Keeping inventory

Regardless of where they reside or what natural disasters they may encounter, everyone should do this. Maintaining a regular asset inventory could help you stay out of trouble with the IRS and insurance companies.

Especially for specialized equipment that would be hard to replace, this can be achieved by capturing pictures or videos and writing detailed descriptions that include the year, make, and model numbers as appropriate.

These documents can be used to support insurance claims or tax benefits and expedite the filing process, but they must be current and comprehensive enough to withstand inspection.

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