The Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector will review your waiver request in accordance with the the San Francisco Business and Tax Regulations Code (and/or the California Revenue & Taxation Code where applicable) which allow the Office to waive or cancel penalties, costs, fees or interest in certain, limited cases.
The waiver review process may take up to six weeks. Unpaid balances will continue to accrue additional penalties and interest which are the responsibility of the tax payers should the waiver request be denied.
We encourage taxpayers to provide any documentation supporting their waiver request. You will have an opportunity to upload your supporting documents during the DocuSign process at the end of the application.
Select one of the following to begin:
- Did not receive a notice or bill
- Forgot to file and/or pay
- Not knowing Personal Identification Number (PIN) or Location Identification Number (LIN)
- First late payment
- Responsible person is no longer with the company
- Payment arrived after delinquent date with no postmark from US Postal Service
- Confused by bill, unsure of what to pay
- Can’t afford tax payment
- Failure to make a timely payment is due to reasonable cause and circumstances beyond the taxpayer's control, and occurred notwithstanding the exercise of ordinary care in the absence of willful neglect; or
- There was an inadvertent error in the payment amount made by the taxpayer, and payment for the proper amount due is made within 10 days.
When should I expect a decision to be made?
Waiver requests are processed in the order that they are received. Normal processing time is about 6 weeks, but may be longer after filing deadlines.
How will I know the decision? Should I call?
No, there is no need to call unless it has been more than twelve weeks from your submission date. The Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector will contact you by mail with a final decision.
If my request for waiver is approved I will have an overpayment on my account. What should I do?
This request for waiver constitutes a request for refund, so if your waiver is granted and you have an overpayment on your account, we will consider it a request for refund and will process it.
What if I haven’t paid and get a waiver?
Our office encourages taxpayers to pay all outstanding tax bills. Penalties and interest will continue to accrue on all unpaid obligations.
If my waiver request is denied, is there an appeal process?
If you do not agree with the decision, you may be entitled to file a claim with the Office of the City Attorney. The forms are available online at http://www.sfcityattorney.org
Who makes the decision to approve or deny my waiver request?
The California Revenue & Taxation Code and the San Francisco Business and Tax Regulations Code are very specific about circumstances under which the Tax Collector is allowed to waive penalties. By law, we are required to use these standards when reviewing all requests.
Should I also send my request through the mail/email?
No. Submitting a request via the online web form is the fastest way to ensure we have received your request. Submitting duplicate requests, either by mail or electronically, may cause delays.
Is there a file size limit?
The total of all attachments may not exceed 25MB.
Request a Business Tax Refund or Application to a Future Obligation (AFO)
To request a refund or request to apply excess funds to a future obligation, submit an online request.
Please note, the due date for Annual Business Tax Returns 2022 is February 28, 2023 and refund requests for Annual Business Tax Returns 2022 will generally be considered timely for one year past that date.
Every effort will be made to process the request sooner, however please allow up to six months from the date the request is filed for processing of the refund.
Property Tax Refund
If you paid more than once, or overpaid your property tax bill, your refund will be processed automatically in the order it is received. You do not need to take any additional action. Please allow up to four months for processing and be assured every effort will be made to process the refund as quickly as possible.
Need Further Assistance?
Visit our Help Center to submit a question. Questions submitted before 7:00 pm will receive a response on the SAME DAY. Questions submitted after 7:00 pm will receive a response by the next business day.