December 19, 2017
Re: § 58.1-1821 Application: Individual Income Tax
Dear *****:
This will reply to your letter in which you seek a refund of the overpayment of individual income tax paid by ***** (the “Taxpayer”) for the taxable year ended December 31, 2012.
FACTS
The Taxpayer filed a 2012 Virginia individual income tax return in December 2016, reporting an overpayment of income tax and requesting a refund. The Department denied the refund because the return was filed beyond the refund period allowed by the statute of limitations. The Taxpayer appeals the Department's denial, contending he was not aware of the statutory deadline to claim a refund.
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 Department shall order a refund of the overpayment. Virginia Code § 58.1-499 D specifies, however, in pertinent part that:
No refund under this section . . . shall be made . . . 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 . . . [Emphasis added.]
Virginia Code § 58.1-341 A requires that a taxpayer file an individual income tax return by May 1 of the year following the tax year for which the return is filed. Based on Virginia statutes, the due date for the Taxpayer's 2012 individual income tax return was May 1, 2013. As such, the return was required to be filed by May 2, 2016, in order to receive a refund for the 2012 taxable year (May 1, 2016, was on a Sunday).
The Department has ruled in similar situations numerous times. See, for example, Public Document (P.D.) 84-137 (8/24/1984), P.D. 87-64 (2/27/1987), P.D. 95101 (5/5/1995), P.D. 07-49 (4/26/2007), P.D. 10-38 (4/8/2010), P.D. 15-29 (2/24/2015), and P.D. 17-18 (3/13/2017).
The original 2012 Virginia income tax return was not filed until December 2016, after the statute of limitations had expired on May 2, 2016. The provisions of Virginia Code § 58.1-499 D are clear and do not provide the Department with any discretion in enforcing the three-year limitations period to apply for a refund. In addition, the Supreme Court of Virginia has long accepted the principle that individuals may not avoid the legal consequences of their actions by pleading ignorance of the law. See Brown v. Armistead, 27 Va. 594, 601, 1828 Va. LEXIS 43 (1828). The Taxpayer, therefore, could not avoid the application of the statute of limitations by being unaware of it. Accordingly, I cannot approve the Taxpayer's request for refund of the overpayment of individual income tax for the taxable year ended December 31, 2012.
The Code of Virginia sections and public documents cited are available on-line at www.tax.virginia.gov in the Laws, Rules & Decisions section of the Department's web site. If you have any questions regarding this determination, you may contact ***** in the Office of Tax Policy, Appeals and Rulings, at *****.
Sincerely,
Craig M. Burns
Tax Commissioner
AR/1410.M