U.S. tax authorities will extend a limited amnesty program for U.S. taxpayers who have undeclared income on foreign accounts to October 15 from September 23, The Wall Street Journal said on Monday, citing unnamed government officials.

The Internal Revenue Service amnesty program began in March after the Swiss bank UBS AG turned over the names of some account holders as part of a $780 million criminal settlement with the U.S. government.

An extension was granted after tax professionals pleaded for more time to help taxpayers enter the program, the Journal said. More than 3,000 taxpayers have come forward, compared with 88 for all of last year, it quoted the government officials as saying.

The IRS was not immediately available for comment.

Last month, the Swiss government agreed to a settlement that could result in disclosure of the names of several thousand account holders at various banks.

The IRS amnesty program could result in account holders paying large monetary penalties but avoiding criminal charges.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; editing by John Wallace)

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