Updated November 5, 2026. Quick answer: For information returns required to be filed in 2028 (tax year 2027), the section 6721 penalty for a failure to file a correct return is $360 per return, up from $340 for returns due in 2027, per IRS Rev. Proc. 2026-35, announced November 5, 2026. It drops to $70 if corrected within 30 days and $140 if corrected by August 1, 2028; the yearly maximum depends on the filer’s gross receipts.
The amounts for returns due in 2028
Item .62 of section 3 of Rev. Proc. 2026-35 sets the penalty amounts under section 6721 for “any failure relating to a return required to be filed in 2028”. It splits filers by size: persons with average annual gross receipts for the most recent three taxable years of more than $5,000,000, and those with $5,000,000 or less. The previous year’s amounts are in Rev. Proc. 2025-32, item .57 of section 3.
Gross receipts over $5,000,000
| Gross receipts over $5,000,000 | Per return, due in 2027 | Per return, due in 2028 | Yearly maximum, due in 2027 | Yearly maximum, due in 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General rule (section 6721(a)(1)) | $340 | $360 | $4,191,500 | $4,327,500 |
| Corrected within 30 days (section 6721(b)(1)) | $60 | $70 | $698,500 | $721,000 |
| Corrected after day 30 and by August 1 (section 6721(b)(2)) | $130 | $140 | $2,095,500 | $2,163,500 |
Gross receipts of $5,000,000 or less
| Gross receipts of $5,000,000 or less | Per return, due in 2027 | Per return, due in 2028 | Yearly maximum, due in 2027 | Yearly maximum, due in 2028 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General rule (section 6721(d)(1)(A)) | $340 | $360 | $1,397,000 | $1,442,500 |
| Corrected within 30 days (section 6721(d)(1)(B)) | $60 | $70 | $244,500 | $252,000 |
| Corrected after day 30 and by August 1 (section 6721(d)(1)(C)) | $130 | $140 | $698,500 | $721,000 |
Intentional disregard
Deliberate failures are treated separately. The Rev. Proc. covers “failure to file correct information returns due to intentional disregard of the filing requirement (or the correct information reporting requirement):” For most returns the penalty is the greater of $720 or 10% of the aggregate amount of items required to be reported correctly, with no yearly limit; the amount for returns filed in 2027 was $690.
What section 6721 says
The statute sets the original amounts: “such person shall pay a penalty of $250 for each return with respect to which such a failure occurs, but the total amount imposed on such person for all such failures during any calendar year shall not exceed $3,000,000.” A prompt fix cuts it: “the penalty imposed by subsection (a) shall be $50 in lieu of $250, and” “the penalty imposed by subsection (a) shall be $100 in lieu of $250, and” for the August 1 tier. Section 6721(f) indexes the dollar amounts and rounds: “is not less than $75,000 and is not a multiple of $500, such amount shall be rounded to the next lowest multiple of $500”, and “is not described in subparagraph (A) and is not a multiple of $10, such amount shall be rounded to the next lowest multiple of $10.”
Check of the 2028 table: every per-return figure ($360, $70, $140) is a multiple of $10 and every yearly maximum is a multiple of $500 (computed). A single cost-of-living factor between 1.4425 and 1.4426 (computed) reproduces the $360, $70, $140, $4,327,500, $721,000, $2,163,500, $1,442,500 and $252,000 figures when applied to the statute’s $250, $50, $100, $3,000,000, $500,000, $1,500,000, $1,000,000 and $175,000 and rounded down as above. The factor is not printed in the Rev. Proc., so this shows the table is internally consistent and not what the factor is.
Payee statements follow the same amounts
Item .63 of section 3 sets the penalty for failing to furnish a correct payee statement under section 6722 for statements required to be furnished in 2028. The general rule is $360 per statement with a $4,327,500 yearly maximum for the larger filers, the same as for returns. Section 6722 mirrors the statute above: “the penalty imposed by subsection (a) shall be $50 in lieu of $250”.
Who this affects
Businesses that issue Forms 1099 and W-2 face the penalty per form that is late or wrong. Deadlines are on the Form 1099-NEC deadline for 2027 and the W-2 filing deadline for 2027, the reporting threshold is on the 1099-NEC threshold for 2027, and the boxes are explained on the 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC boxes.
Common mistakes
- Using one dollar figure for every filer. The yearly maximum depends on whether average annual gross receipts for the most recent three taxable years exceed $5,000,000.
- Missing the correction windows. Fixing a return within 30 days of the filing date, or by August 1, reduces the per-return penalty to $70 or $140.
- Using $340 for a return required to be filed in 2028. The Rev. Proc. sets $360 for those returns.
Related: the Form 1099-NEC deadline for 2027, the W-2 filing deadline for 2027, the 1099-NEC threshold for 2027, and the 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC boxes.
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Answer againSources
- Internal Revenue Service, Rev. Proc. 2026-35, tax year 2027 inflation-adjusted amounts (announced November 5, 2026): www.irs.gov
- Internal Revenue Service, Rev. Proc. 2025-32, tax year 2026 inflation-adjusted amounts, as modified by the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act: www.irs.gov
- 26 U.S.C. 6721, Failure to file correct information returns (U.S. Code, U.S. Government Publishing Office): www.govinfo.gov
- 26 U.S.C. 6722, Failure to furnish correct payee statements (U.S. Code, U.S. Government Publishing Office): www.govinfo.gov
Read from the primary documents linked above on November 5, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer or the IRS itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.