Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code allows an employer to provide tax-free qualified disaster relief payments to Texas and Louisiana employees in designated areas affected by Hurricane Harvey.
Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) allows an employer to provide tax-free disaster relief to its employees, and the employer may take a tax deduction for these payments, if the payments constitute qualified disaster relief payments. Given the benefits of tax-free status for qualified disaster relief payments, employers that choose to provide such payments should consider adopting an administrative system that validates such payments meet Code Section 139 requirements.