Fernando D. Rivera - Page 8




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          petitioner is not entitled to an earned income credit for 1997              
          should be sustained, and we so hold.                                        
          4. Section 6651(a)(1) Addition to Tax                                       
               Petitioner did not request an extension to file his 1997               
          return.  Consequently, it was due on or before April 15, 1998,              
          sec. 6072(a), but it was not filed until June 25, 1998.                     
               Section 6651(a)(1) provides for an addition to tax of 5                
          percent of the amount of the tax required to have been shown on             
          the return if the failure to file is for not more than 1 month,             
          with an additional 5 percent for each month in which the failure            
          to file continues, to a maximum of 25 percent of the tax in the             
          aggregate.  If an income tax return is not filed within 60 days             
          of the prescribed date for filing (including extensions), the               
          addition to tax imposed is not less than the lesser of $100 or              
          100 percent of the amount required to be shown as tax on the                
          return.  Sec. 6651(a).  The addition to tax is applicable unless            
          it is shown that the failure to file is due to reasonable cause             
          and not due to willful neglect.  Id.                                        
               Petitioner’s 1996 return was filed more than 60 days after             
          April 15, 1997.  Petitioner did not explain why his 1996 return             
          was filed late.  Because petitioner has not demonstrated that his           
          failure to file a timely 1996 Federal income tax return was due             
          to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect, he is liable            
          for the addition to tax under section 6651(a)(1).                           






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