Tax Type
General Provisions
Description
Protective claim for refund; Delinquent assessment
Topic
Collection of Delinquent Tax
Payment and Refund
Date Issued
01-11-1990
January 11, 1990
Dear **********************
This is in response to your letter of December 15, 1989, in which you request that collection of the assessment against **************** be suspended until the conclusion of litigation.
My July 5, 1989, letter (copy enclosed) contained the following statements: "Accordingly, the assessment for taxable year 1986 is correct and is now due and payable. . . . You may wish to preserve the taxpayer's judicial remedies by having your client pay the assessment and file a protective claim pursuant to Virginia Code §58.1-1824." (Emphasis added.) This section allows a taxpayer to file a protective claim for refund within three years of the assessment. It does not permit a taxpayer to delay paying a validly assessed tax for up to three years.
The department's assessments are presumed correct under Va. Code §58.1-205. Although the validity of a similar assessment is the subject of pending litigation, the department will continue to apply its policies and collect its assessments until there is a final judgment by a competent court holding that our policy is erroneous. The taxpayer's intention to file a protective claim does not require the department to suspend its efforts to collect the assessment.
Accordingly, the assessment is now due and payable.
Sincerely,
W. H. Forst
Tax Commissioner
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner