Tax Type
Individual Income Tax
Description
Failure to timely file a return
Topic
Statute of Limitations
Date Issued
07-19-2012
July 19, 2012
Re: § 58.1-1821 Application: Individual Income Tax
Dear *****:
This will reply to your letter in which you request that the Department reconsider its denial of a Virginia individual income tax refund for ***** (the "Taxpayer") for the taxable year ended December 31, 2007. I apologize for the delay in responding
to your letter.
FACTS
The Taxpayer filed a 2007 Virginia income tax return on November 11, 2011. The Department denied the refund claimed on the return because it was filed beyond the statute of limitations. The Taxpayer appeals the denial, contending that all other taxable years were timely filed and she is currently experiencing a financial hardship.
DETERMINATION
Virginia Code § 58.1-499 A provides that in the case of any overpayment of any tax, whether by reason of excessive withholding, overestimating and overpaying estimated tax, or error on the part of the taxpayer, the Tax Commissioner shall order a refund of the overpayment. Under Va. Code § 58.1-499 D, however, the Department cannot issue a refund, "whether on discovery by the Department or on written application of the taxpayer, if such discovery is not made or such written application is not received within three years from the last day prescribed by law for the timely filing of the return."
Virginia Code § 58.1-341 A requires that a taxpayer file an individual income tax return by May 1 of the year following the taxable year for which the return is filed. In order to receive a refund, the Taxpayer's original return for the 2007 taxable year was required to be filed within three years of the due date, or by May 2, 2011 (May 1 fell on a Sunday). In this case, the Taxpayer filed an original 2007 income tax return on November 11, 2011, well after the expiration of the statute of limitations.
While I empathize with your situation, the Department is bound by the clear requirements under the law and is not empowered to waive the statute of limitations in this situation. Accordingly, I must deny the Taxpayer's request for refund for the 2007 taxable year.
The Code of Virginia sections cited are available on-line in the Tax Policy Library section of the Department's web site, located at www.tax.virginia.gov. If you have any questions regarding this determination, you may contact ***** in the Office of Tax Policy, Appeals and Rulings, at *****.
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- Sincerely,
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Craig M. Burns
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- Tax Commissioner
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AR/1-4962949680.D
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner