Can You Get an Extension on Form 3520?

Yes, with one form

There is no Form 3520-specific extension request. Form 3520's deadline is tied to your individual income tax return, so the way to extend Form 3520 is to extend your Form 1040 using Form 4868 (Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File US Individual Income Tax Return).

File Form 4868 by April 15 → your Form 1040 deadline moves to October 15 → your Form 3520 deadline moves to October 15 automatically.

How to actually file Form 4868

Three ways, in order of how reliable they are:

1. Through tax software — TurboTax, FreeTaxUSA, HR Block all support Form 4868. Free in most cases. Generates a confirmation number you can save.
2. IRS Free File Fillable Forms — works for any income level. Submit electronically through IRS.gov.
3. Paper Form 4868 — download the PDF from IRS.gov, fill in, mail. Slowest path. Use certified mail.

Form 4868 itself takes about 90 seconds to fill in. Name, address, SSN, an estimate of your tax liability (zero is fine if you owe nothing), and an estimate of your payments. Sign, file.

Common confusion

You do not need to file Form 4868 if you already have an extension via Form 2350. Form 2350 is for US citizens abroad who need additional time to meet the foreign-earned-income-exclusion qualifications. Rare. Most filers use 4868.

You do not need to file Form 4868 if you are abroad on April 15 — you get an automatic two-month extension to June 15 by writing "Taxpayer Abroad" on your return. But you cannot stack June 15 + October 15. You pick one: the automatic two-month or the Form 4868 four-month-from-April-15.

Form 4868 does NOT extend the time to pay. If you owe income tax (separate from Form 3520, which is usually informational only), that tax is still due April 15. Form 3520 itself does not generate tax for most filers, so this is usually not an issue.

What if you missed the April 15 deadline for Form 4868 too

You have two options:

1. File Form 3520 as late as you can with a reasonable-cause statement attached. Explain why you missed the deadline and what circumstances caused it. The IRS can abate the late-filing penalty if your explanation qualifies.
2. File a "delinquent international information return" submission. This is an IRS program (formerly the Streamlined Procedures) for taxpayers who failed to file required international returns. It is more procedural — you might want a CPA's help.

The key thing is: file the form as soon as you can. The penalty accrues monthly, capped at 25% of the gift amount. Filing late is better than not filing.

Our app and extensions

Our app does not file Form 4868 for you. You handle that with your regular tax software. Once you have an extension, you can file the Form 3520 we generate any time up to October 15 — our app does not care which deadline applies, as long as you mail it before yours.

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3520file is software, not a CPA firm or law firm. We prepare IRS Form 3520 based on the facts you provide. For advice on your specific situation, talk to a tax attorney or CPA. The above is plain-English explanation, not tax advice.