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Request for relief from tax delinquency penalties, tax defaulted property penalties and/or costs associated with tax delinquencies or defaults must be completed on this application.

Full payment of taxes, penalties and applicable costs currently due must be paid and all supporting documentation must also be included with the application, or it will be denied.

• Read and acknowledge that you have read the Important Information Section below prior to completing this form.

• Select the California Revenue and Taxation Code (R&TC) Section you believe allows the Tax Collector to cancel the penalties imposed.

• Complete the informational section at the top of the Penalty Cancellation Request Form.

• Select the type of bill and bill year for which you are requesting penalty cancellation.

• Please enter a brief description of the nature of your request for penalty cancellation. Please note this field is limited to 1,000 characters, including spaces, returns, and other system control characters.

• Read and consent to the acknowledgement that the documents you submit constitute a public record under the California Public Records Act. After submitting the Penalty Cancellation Request, you will receive an email confirmation for your request for tax penalty relief.

• Submit supporting documentation with your request for penalty relief, if applicable to support your request. Please redact all personally sensitive information as emails are not encrypted and are not secure.

The California Revenue and Taxation Code (R&TC) grants the Treasurer and Tax Collector the authority to cancel penalties in limited circumstances. Below are examples of requests that the Tax Collector will deny if submitted for penalty cancellation review.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on a taxpayer's request to consider the taxpayer's positive payment history. The R&TC does not grant the Tax Collector the authority to consider a taxpayer's payment history, whether positive or negative, in determining whether or not to cancel a penalty

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty related to a home banking or online bill payment that a taxpayer initiated prior to the delinquency date, which the Tax Collector received after the delinquency date. The reason for this is that the United States Postal Service does not postmark the envelopes used to remit payments from home banking and online bill payment services. In the absence of a postmark, the Tax Collector only considers the received date in determining if the payment is late and if the penalty applies. Finally, some banks provide a disclosure on their online bill pay websites urging users not to use the service when making federal, state or local tax payments of any kind.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on the payment envelope containing a postage meter date that is the delinquency date or a date prior to the delinquency date. The R&TC states that the remittance (payment) will be deemed received on the date shown by the United States Postal Service (USPS) cancellation mark stamped on the envelope. A postage meter is a mailing system, distinct from the mailing systems of the USPS, typically used by private businesses that prints postage directly on the envelope. A postage meter date is not a cancellation postmark the USPS stamps on an envelope. A postage meter date only indicates that the proper postage was paid; it is not evidence when someone deposits an item for mailing with the USPS.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on an assertion that the taxpayer mailed the payment “early enough” to allow the United States Postal Service sufficient time to deliver the payment prior to the delinquency date. The reason for this is that the R&TC states that the remittance will be deemed received on the date shown by the post office cancellation mark stamped on the envelope.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on the financial circumstances of a taxpayer, which prevented the taxpayer from paying the amount due prior to the delinquency date. Under the R&TC, there is no provision to cancel penalties due to financial circumstances that prevented a timely payment.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on non-receipt of a property tax bill. Under the R&TC, there is no provision to cancel penalties imposed for failure to receive a tax bill.

The Tax Collector will deny most requests to cancel a penalty based on a taxpayer not understanding the property tax process. The reason for this is that most real estate transactions occur through an escrow process where property tax information is provided.

The Tax Collector will deny a request to cancel a penalty based on the taxpayer submitting incorrect information while submitting an online payment through the Treasurer and Tax Collector’s online payment system. The reason for this is that taxpayers agree to Terms of Use and Terms of Payment that place the responsibility with the taxpayer to enter correct account information. Examples of taxpayer online payment errors include, but are not limited to, taxpayer input of an incorrect account or routing number in an E-Check transaction or failure to accurately validate credit/debit card information. The Tax Collector's Office cannot guarantee uninterrupted availability of the website. Delinquent fees and penalties may result from such unavailability. It's recommended to pay your taxes early.