As you are in the designated LA fire area, you will not need to file any special forms to inform the IRS or CA FTB for making the payment by October 15, 2025. Your address on the tax return automatically notifies the IRS of the reason for paying by October 15, 2025.
If the IRS send you a late payment notice, you will need to call them and ask them to remove the penalty as you are in the disaster zone.
In Turbo Tax, you will need to take the following steps to report the casualty losses:
Steps to enter your disaster loss in TurboTax
- Sign in to your TurboTax Online account and select "Take me to my return".
- Go to the federal section and select "Deductions & Credits".
- Navigate to the "Casualties and Thefts" subsection. In TurboTax Desktop, you can use the search feature to jump to this section.
- Answer "Yes" to the question about whether you had anything damaged or stolen.
- In the "Description" field, enter the name of the disaster. For the 2025 Los Angeles County wildfires, a format like "California, Los Angeles County Fire" is appropriate.
- Continue following the prompts to enter the specific details of your property loss, damage, and any insurance reimbursements you received
In the California section, the prompts will ask you if you are in the disaster zone. Make sure to answer them correctly.
CA FTB will not issue a penalty notice for the 2024 taxes paid and return filed on October 15, 2025 or even the estimated taxes paid on that date.
