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I Received a Letter Relating to Unpaid Taxes – What Does it Mean?
The letter you received from the Office of State Tax Commissioner will explain why you were contacted and will give instructions for what you need to do. Below are letters you may receive regarding unpaid tax debt.
- Statement of Tax Due – The statement shows the amount past due for your account and identifies any credits applied or payments that have been made. It is broken out by tax period and shows the amount of tax, penalty, and interest for each period. A Statement of Tax Due is sent out before collection activities start and continues to be sent periodically until the debt is fully paid.
- Collection Letter – Receiving a Collection Letter means the unpaid debt has been assigned to the Office of State Tax Commissioner’s Collections Section. The letter will direct you on how to pay your tax obligation and will provide information about what may happen if you do not pay the amount due.
- Notice of State Income Tax Refund or Credit Offset – This letter indicates a refund or credit was applied to other debt, which could be debt owed to the Office of State Tax Commissioner or debt from a different government agency. The government agency that received the payment is listed in the letter along with a contact number to call if you have any questions. Offsets sent to another state agency are based on information furnished by that agency.
- Notice of Intent to Offset Federal Income Tax Refund – North Dakota participates in the Treasury Offset Program (TOP). When individual income tax debt is submitted to TOP, future federal refunds may be applied to your North Dakota tax debt. Visit the Treasury Offset Program to learn more.
- Notice of State Tax Lien – This letter is sent to notify you a tax lien has been filed. A tax lien is a legal document claiming money is owed to the Office of State Tax Commissioner. This is applied to your real and personal property, which means it may not be able to be sold until the tax is paid. A tax lien is a public record that may affect your credit score.
- Satisfaction of State Tax Lien – This letter is sent to notify you that a tax lien has been satisfied. Keep this letter as proof that the lien has been satisfied.