Tax Type
Estate Tax
Description
Amended return claiming a refund
Topic
Payment and Refund
Date Issued
12-07-1988
December 7, 1988
Re: §58.1-1821 Application; Virginia Estate Tax
§58.1-906 Amended Estate Tax Return
§58.1-1823 Amended Return Claiming a Refund
Dear**************
This is in response to your letters of March 20, July 31, and October 29, 1988, requesting a credit for estate tax paid to another state. Your request has been referred to this office for handling as an administrative application for correction of an erroneous assessment.
Facts
The Virginia estate tax return was due in August, 1984, but was not filed until May 13, 1985. Although Schedule A of the federal return reported real estate located in Florida, the Virginia return did not claim a credit for taxes paid to Florida. On January 15, 1988, a first amended Virginia estate tax return was filed to report additional Virginia estate tax attributable to changes made in a federal audit. On March 20, 1988, a second amended return was filed requesting a credit for tax paid to Florida on February 14, 1988. On October 29, 1988, you submitted evidence that additional tax had been paid to Florida attributable to the changes made by the federal audit, and requested a refund based on allowing a credit for the additional tax. For purposes of this letter I will refer to your October 29, 1988, letter as a third amended return.
Determination
Under §58.1-906 B. an estate is required to report an increase in Virginia estate tax within 60 days of any final determination of a deficiency of federal estate tax. The timeliness of the first amended return has not been questioned by the department. Therefore, it is presumed that the final determination of a change in federal tax liability occurred on or within 60 days before January 15, 1988, when the first amended return was filed.
Under §58.1-1823 an amended return claiming a refund must be filed within three years of the due date of the original return or, if later, within 60 days of the final determination of a change in federal tax liability as defined in regulation VR 630-1-1823 (copy enclosed). The second amended return was filed more than three years after the due date of the original return, and 66 days after January 15, 1988. Therefore, the period for filing an amended return clearly expired before the second amended return was filed. Therefore, the refunds requested on both the second and the third amended returns are denied.
You state that "several years ago" you were advised by department personnel to pay the Florida tax and then request a refund, but that you were not advised that such refund requests were subject to the statute of limitations. At that time the period for filing refund requests was not close to expiring. In addition, it is the responsibility of the taxpayer to timely file amended returns if a refund is desired.
Under §58.1-1823, the denial of a refund is treated as an assessment for the limited purpose of permitting a review of the denial. Therefore, your refund requests were referred to this office. After reviewing the facts and the applicable law, I have concluded that I have no alternative but to deny the refund requests because the amended returns were filed more than three years after the due date of the return and more than 60 days after a change in federal tax liability.
Sincerely,
W. H. Forst
Tax Commissioner
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner