WASHINGTON STATE — Families who lost tax returns, bank statements and property papers in Washington’s recent wildfires and those still piecing together records after last winter’s historic floods can reconstruct enough documentation to file returns, claim casualty losses and apply for aid, the IRS said in a guidance issued September 2 in Tax Tip 2026-67.
The guidance comes as eastern Washington communities recover from wildfires that began July 31, including the Spokane-area Old Trails, Autumn Lane and Fairview fires that damaged or destroyed more than 800 structures. President Donald Trump approved an emergency declaration August 4 for Chelan, Ferry, Okanogan, Spokane, Stevens and Yakima counties, plus the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and the Spokane Tribe of Indians. Gov. Bob Ferguson’s state proclamation covered Douglas County and later added Benton, Columbia, Grant, Kittitas and Whitman counties.
The same counties and tribal nations are still dealing with damage from December 2025 atmospheric-river storms that flooded western and central Washington, damaged nearly 4,000 homes and prompted a later major disaster declaration. Chelan County is among the places hit by both disasters.
Filing deadlines for victims
The IRS has postponed many federal filing and payment deadlines until February 1, 2027, for taxpayers in the federally covered wildfire counties and three tribal nations with a separate relief for Douglas County under the state’s disaster declaration WA-2026-02.
The extra time covers most individual and business returns and payments originally due on or after July 31, 2026, including estimated taxes and certain quarterly payroll returns. It does not cover 2025 individual tax payments that were due April 15, 2026. People who live outside the listed areas, but whose records were stored there — or who were working as relief workers can call the IRS Special Services line at 866-562-5227 for further assistance.
Flood-related filing extensions tied to the December storms ran through August. 5, 2026. Those deadline postponements have expired, but flood victims can still reconstruct records to support casualty-loss claims, insurance payments and any remaining federal or state assistance.
Gov. Ferguson’s Office is currently preparing a request for a major disaster declaration for the wildfires which is due by September 29. The current emergency declaration sign by President Trump on August 4 authorized federal response help but not the individual household grants, FEMA Individual Assistance, and Small Business Administration disaster loans that typically follow a major declaration.
Reconstruction of records will matter if that aid becomes available later. To be considered for the aid, applicants will need to prove the loss with ownership or occupancy records, property value, what was damaged, what insurance already paid, and sometimes income. After a fire, the originals are often gone, so reconstructing records such as tax transcripts, bank and card statements, title documents, contractor invoices, and before-and-after photos.
The same paperwork also matters even if FEMA aid never comes, the IRS says. Insurers, SBA lenders and the IRS all use it. For taxes, the IRS may let fire victims claim an uninsured casualty loss, but only if they can show basis and the drop in value.
How to replace tax returns
The IRS says a tax-return transcript is usually the most useful replacement after a fire or flood. Washington taxpayers can:
- Sign in to an Individual Online Account to view, print or download transcripts.
- Use Get Transcript or call 800-908-9946. Mail delivery typically takes five to 10 days.
- File Form 4506-T for a transcript or Form 4506 for a copy of a return.
Affected wildfire taxpayers should write FEMA declaration number 3650-EM in bold at the top of Form 4506 or 4506-T. The IRS is waiving the usual copy fees for people in the covered fire areas. Personalized disaster messages may also appear in online accounts. State-specific updates are posted on the IRS Around the nation — Washington page.
Homes, belongings and vehicles
Fires consumed paper files in Spokane neighborhoods such as Five Mile Prairie and Balboa; whereas floodwaters did the same last winter along rivers including the Skagit, Snohomish, Cedar, Green and Stehekin. The IRS says taxpayers can still document losses with bank and credit-card statements, photos and videos taken before or immediately after the disaster, contractor invoices, title-company files, assessor records and dealer contracts.
For real estate, owners are told to contact the title company, escrow agent or lender that handled the purchase. Homeowners who remodeled their structures should ask contractors for written proof of the work and cost. Friends or relatives who saw the property before improvements are also permitted to provide statements on behalf of victims. County assessors often keep older valuation records when nothing else survives, so, utilizes their offices for records. Vehicle values, the IRS says, can be reconstructed from online pricing guides and original dealer contracts.
Claiming losses
Wildfire victims in the IRS relief areas may deduct uninsured or unreimbursed disaster losses and can elect to claim the loss on the return for the disaster year or the prior year—this can generally be made up to six months after the due date of the disaster-year return, not counting extensions. Use Form 4684, Casualties and Thefts, and put 3650-EM on the return—see Publication 547 for an explanation of the rules.
The IRS publishes room-by-room inventory workbooks: Publication 584 for households and Publication 584-B for businesses. Publication 3067 summarizes disaster tax help.
Qualified disaster-relief payments for necessary living expenses and home repairs are generally excluded from income. Some retirement-plan disaster distributions may also be available; see Form 8915-F.
Extensive list of situations not listed above are covered in the IRS FAQs for disaster victims and wildfire relief payment FAQs.
Where to get help
Federal disaster aid information is located at DisasterAssistance.gov or 800-621-3362. A longer IRS explainer on reconstructing records after a disaster can be found here: Reconstructing records after a natural disaster or casualty loss | Internal Revenue Service.
Author: Mario Lotmore
