Hundreds turned away from Atlanta IRS office as tax deadline looms

ATLANTA - Monday is the deadline for tax filers to send in their returns to the Internal Revenue Service or face possible penalties.

Over the weekend, chaos unfolded at the downtown Atlanta IRS tax office, where hundreds of people showed up looking for free last-minute help. Many were shocked when they were turned away and told to come back in over a month.

"They saw all of us here and then closed early," one angry Atlanta resident told FOX 5's Eric Mock.

The line wrapped around the building at Atlanta's IRS office on Saturday, with some people arriving early in the morning in the hopes of getting help ahead of the tax deadline.

The federal agency has a series of once-a-month walk-in events to help taxpayers without appointments. The doors on West Peachtree Street were set to open at 9.

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Many people told FOX 5 they had to take off work or bring their children with them to wait for hours in line.

"It's very inconvenient because this is my off day, and I've had to be out here since early this morning. It's a big inconvenience for me," one woman, who had brought her 2-month-old son with her to wait for almost 8 hours, told FOX 5.

All the people FOX 5 spoke to said they had to have their identity verified in person to receive their refund.

The IRS said they were going to hold the event from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., but frustrations overflowed after the doors closed hours before the scheduled stopping point.

"Nobody came out to communicate with us and let us know," one resident said.

Atlanta police officers were called out to inform the crowd that no one else would be seen, and that they would have to come back on May 18.

"You already made me miss work. I stayed in line because I had to stay here, and you tell me I can't verify online, I got everything else but yet there's no answers for me," one man said.

The IRS responded to FOX 5's requests for comment with a statement saying they will be adding more people to help on their phone lines.

You can schedule an appointment by calling (844) 545-5640.

You can also get an automatic extension to file until Oct. 15 by visiting the IRS's website.