For Immediate Release
Date: 02/09/2010
Contact: Joel Davison, Public Relations Manager (804) 786-3507 joel.davison@tax.virginia.gov
Filing your Tax Return Online Is the Fastest Way to Get your Refund
~ A record 2.3 million taxpayers filed their Virginia returns online last year ~
RICHMOND, Va. – Last year, more than 2.3 million Virginia taxpayers, a record 61 percent, filed their tax refunds electronically – hands down, the easiest, fastest, safest way to file. If they were due a refund, the majority of online taxpayers had them within days. Those who filed on paper, on the other hand, waited up to four weeks for their refunds.
Filers can expect the same turnaround times this year.
The reason for this is that, like last year, the Department of Taxation (TAX) is hiring fewer hourly employees during the busy filing season to process paper returns due to the budget issues facing the Commonwealth. Processing paper returns is much more costly than processing returns filed over the Internet.
Not only is electronic filing the fastest way to get your tax refund, it is also the easiest way to file because you can transmit your return anytime you want as long as you have a computer and an Internet connection. TAX also has a secure Web site to keep your tax information confidential and, with electronic filing, the processing of your return and refund won’t be delayed due to math errors because electronic filing programs do the calculations for you.
“Income tax filing season is the only time of year we interact with most taxpayers and we want their experience to be as smooth and pleasant as possible; that’s why we encourage them to file online,” said Tax Commissioner Janie Bowen. “More and more taxpayers are filing their returns electronically each year and finding that it takes them far less time than filling out paper forms, and puts their refund in their hand much sooner.”
Whether you file online or on paper, you should have your refund deposited directly into your bank account. Requesting a check adds approximately another week to the processing of your refund.
Taxpayers have several options for filing their tax returns electronically and getting a faster refund:
For Immediate Release
Date: 10/15/2009
Contact: Joel Davison, Public Relations Manager (804) 786-3507 joel.davison@tax.virginia.gov
Sign Up Now to Get Important Tax News, Reminders Delivered to your Computer
~ New E-Subscription Service Is Information Resource for Taxpayers ~
RICHMOND, Va. – Did you remember that the annual back-to-school sales tax holiday for school and office supplies, clothing and footwear was Aug. 7-9? If you pay quarterly estimated taxes, do you know when your payment is due?
If you own a computer, you can now get important reminders likes these, plus the latest news and updates about the types of taxes that affect you, delivered right to your inbox.
The Department of Taxation (TAX) this week introduces E-Subscriptions, a new service for keeping subscribers informed about the tax types that interest them most, such as personal income tax, sales and use tax, employee withholding tax, and many more. This free service is available to anyone who has an e-mail address. It will be most useful to individuals, businesses, tax professionals, payroll providers, and software developers.
“E-Subscriptions is part of our ongoing effort to provide Virginia taxpayers with timely, accurate information that’s important to them,” said Tax Commissioner Janie E. Bowen. “Whether you’re an individual who just likes to know what’s going on in the tax world, or a payroll provider whose business depends on keeping up with the latest changes in employee withholding, E-Subscriptions could be a very valuable service.”
E-Subscriptions has separate e-mail lists for individual income tax, sales and use tax, employer withholding tax, corporate income tax, pass-through-entity tax, tobacco tax, and miscellaneous taxes. People may sign up for as many lists as they want or select “All Tax Types” to receive all reminders. They will also have the option of unsubscribing from the lists at any time.
To sign up or find out more about E-Subscriptions, go the agency’s home page at tax.virginia.gov and click on the link under Announcements at the top of the page.
Even if you are not a subscriber to the service, you will be able to search the archives containing all information that has been sent out.
For Immediate Release
Date: 10/14/2009
Contact: Joel Davison, Public Relations Manager (804) 786-3507 joel.davison@tax.virginia.gov
Giant, Square Smiley Face Head Sightings all over Virginia
~ Taxation Department invites Facebook fans, Twitter followers ~
RICHMOND, Va. – In its effort to bring a kinder, gentler approach to its tax amnesty program The Virginia Department of Taxation is inviting people to become Facebook fans of its Giant Square Smiley Face Heads. The agency is also tweeting about taxes. They even have a YouTube Channel.
“We have also established a LinkedIn page for tax professionals, CPAs and others who want to learn more about the program,” said Tax Commissioner Janie Bowen. “We are trying to be as progressive and inviting to the public as possible, so people can easily pay what they owe and get square with the state.”
From the outset of the campaign, the Department has looked for ways to help individuals and small businesses take maximum advantage of this window of opportunity to save money on back taxes. In addition to these social media channels, there is also a website, GetSquareVA.com, with a live-chat feature to enable taxpayers to get answers after regular business hours. The toll-free number 1-888-560-0057 (please note: 888, not 800), is also available on Mondays through Thursdays 8:30 a.m.-8 p.m.; Fridays 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. and Saturdays 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
On the first day of the program, there were nearly 3,700 web site visits and the call center received over 6,000 calls.
To participate in Get Square VA, you must take the following steps between Oct. 7, 2009 and Dec. 5, 2009:
• If you have delinquent returns - file required tax returns along with supporting documentation no later than Dec. 5, 2009 and pay the full amount of the tax and one half of the interest;
• If you have outstanding tax bills - send payment for taxes due along with half the interest amount no later than Dec. 5, 2009;
• Submit filings or payments online at www.GetSquareVA.com by midnight on Dec. 5, 2009, or file or pay by mail, postmarked no later than Dec. 5, 2009.
Normally you would pay full interest and penalties on the unpaid tax, but under Get Square VA, you have a chance to get caught up on your taxes and the Commonwealth will drop your penalties and half of your interest. If you wait until after Dec. 5, 2009 to pay up, you’ll be charged full interest and penalties with an additional 20 percent amnesty penalty.
For more information, call 1-888-560-0057 (please note: 888, not 800) or go online at www.GetSquareVa.com. Taxpayers are urged to not wait until the last minute to get their questions answered and to avoid waiting in long lines.
For Immediate Release
Date: 10/07/2009
Contact: Joel Davison, Public Relations Manager (804) 786-3507 joel.davison@tax.virginia.gov
Virginia Taxpayers Can Get Square with the State Starting Today
~ More than 750 phone calls received in first few hours ~
RICHMOND, Va. – The Virginia Department of Taxation has already had an overwhelming response to its September 28th announcement that Virginians can take advantage of a tax amnesty program that forgives and forgets if you pay-up late taxes within the next 60 days.
In an effort to meet the demand for information, the agency opened their toll-free phone lines two days early and handled more than 750 calls in the first few hours.
“The Call Center we contracted with to handle the calls was not scheduled to begin until the amnesty start date of October 7,” said Tax Commissioner Janie Bowen. “We shifted around people within the department to answer the calls and to do everything we can to help people take advantage of the program.”
If you owe back taxes to the state of Virginia, you have a limited window of time this fall to pay-up with NO penalties and half the normal interest charges.
From the outset of the campaign, the department has looked for ways to help individuals and small businesses take maximum advantage of this window of opportunity to save money on back taxes. In addition to the toll-free number, there is also a website, GetSquareVA.com, with a live-chat feature to enable taxpayers to get answers after regular business hours.
To participate in Get Square VA, you must take the following steps between Oct. 7, 2009 and Dec. 5, 2009:
• If you have delinquent returns - file required tax returns along with supporting documentation no later than Dec. 5, 2009 and pay the full amount of the tax and one half of the interest;
• If you have outstanding tax bills - send payment for taxes due along with half the interest amount no later than Dec. 5, 2009;
• Submit filings or payments online at www.GetSquareVA.com by midnight on Dec. 5, 2009, or file or pay by mail, postmarked no later than Dec. 5, 2009.
Normally you would pay full interest and penalties on the unpaid tax, but under Get Square VA, you have a chance to get caught up on your taxes and the Commonwealth will drop your penalties and half of your interest. If you wait until after Dec. 5, 2009 to pay-up, you’ll be charged full interest and penalties with an additional 20 percent amnesty penalty.
For more information, call 1-888-560-0057 (please note: 888, not 800) or go online at www.GetSquareVa.com. Taxpayers are urged to not wait until the last minute to get their questions answered and to avoid waiting in long lines.
For Release
Date: 08/12/2009
Contact: H. Keith Mawyer, Property Tax Manager, (804) 367-8020
Meeting Notice - State Land Evaluation Advisory Council (SLEAC)
The Department of Taxation will host a meeting for the State Land Evaluation Advisory Council on Monday, 09/14/2009 at 11:00am.
Please refer to the meeting details for further information.
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