NJ: Amnesty legislation enacted

Recently-enacted Assembly Bill 3438 requires the Director of the Division of Taxation to establish a tax amnesty program in the coming months. The amnesty, which will be held for no more than 90 days, must end no later than January 15, 2019.  The actual dates of the amnesty are not specified in the bill. Any taxpayer that has failed to pay any state tax that is due may pay the full amount of tax and half the interest that is due as of November 1, 2018 without being required to pay a variety of penalties and fees (e.g., late payment penalties, late filing penalties, cost of collection fees, delinquency penalties, or recovery fees). Any penalties that are owed due to civil fraud or criminal conduct, however, are not waived. Amnesty is available for state tax liabilities, both known and unknown, due on or after February 1, 2009 and prior to September 1, 2017. However, taxpayers that are under criminal investigation for any state tax matter may not participate in the amnesty. The bill imposes a non-waivable five percent penalty in addition to all other penalties or interest authorized by law upon any state tax liability that is eligible to be satisfied during the amnesty period, but is not satisfied. An election to participate in the amnesty constitutes an express and absolute relinquishment of all administrative and judicial rights of appeal that have not run or otherwise expired. Please contact Jim Venere at 973-912-6349 or Jim Bartek at 973-912-4590 with questions on Assembly Bill 3438.