Can a taxpayer obtain a Georgia intangible recording tax refund if no written protest was filed when the tax was paid?

Plain-English summary

The Georgia Department of Revenue denied a claim to refund intangible recording tax paid when a security deed was recorded because the taxpayer had not filed a written protest at the time of payment.

The Department read O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76(a) to require the protest when the tax is paid. That lets the collecting officer make a conditional collection; under subsection (b), the funds received under protest go into a special escrow account until the protest is resolved. The Department said the claimant's documentation and county property records showed that this payment had not been made under protest.

The letter also said the claimant could bring a refund action against the collecting officer in the superior court of the county where the instrument was recorded or in the Georgia Tax Tribunal, no later than 60 days from the denial and service under law.

What this means for you

Borrowers, lenders, and closing professionals

If intangible recording tax is disputed at recordation, the ruling says the written protest must accompany the payment. Paying first and trying to protest later did not preserve this claimant's administrative refund path.

Property owners seeking a refund

Keep proof of the protest and payment together. The Department considered both the claimant's documents and county property records when deciding whether the payment had been made under protest.

Tax professionals

Check procedure before merits. This document says the payment-time protest determines whether the collection enters the statutory protest process, while a separate 60-day period applies to the post-denial action it describes.

Common questions

Q: Can the written protest be filed after intangible recording tax is paid? A: Not under the Department's reading here. It said § 48-6-76(a) requires the protest at the time of payment.

Q: Why does the protest timing matter?
A: A timely protest lets the collecting officer make a conditional collection and place the protested funds in a special escrow account.

Q: What remedy did the letter state after denial?
A: It said a refund action against the collecting officer could be filed in the relevant county superior court or the Georgia Tax Tribunal within 60 days from denial and service pursuant to law.

Q: Why are there several documents labeled IRT 2022-04-22-01? A: Georgia's official archive reuses that displayed ID for different PDFs. This is the Failure to Follow Code refund denial; distinguish it by its topic and source URL.

Citations and references

• O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76(a) (written protest at payment; conditional collection)
• O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76(b) (special escrow account for protested funds)

Source

• IRT/RETT search page: https://dor.georgia.gov/search-irt-rett-letter-rulings
• Topic page: https://dor.georgia.gov/failure-follow-code
• Original PDF: https://dor.georgia.gov/document/document/georgia-letter-ruling-no-irt-2022-04-22-01-failure-follow-codepdf/download

Original ruling text

Frank M. O’Connell

Deputy State Revenue Commissioner

Robyn A. Crittenden

State Revenue Commissioner

Georgia Department of Revenue
Office of the General Counsel
1800 Century Boulevard, N.E., Suite 15107, Atlanta, Georgia 30345

April 22, 2022

VIA: First Class Mail

RE: Intangible Recording Tax Protest and Claim for Refund for Security Deed, recorded on
| with the Clerk of Superior Court, gr:
(“Lender”) by (“Borrowers”);

To Whom it May Concern,

The Department of Revenue has carefully considered your Claim for Refund related to the above-captioned recording. The Department has determined that the intangible recording tax was not paid under protest at the time of filing the instrument as required under O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76. Accordingly, your Claim for Refund is denied. A copy of this letter is being mailed to the

Clerk of Superior Court.

As specified in O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76(a), a written protest must be filed at the time of payment of the intangible recording tax in order for the collecting officer to make a conditional collection of the payment. The conditional collection is significant because, as explained in O.C.G.A. § 48-6-76(b), the funds received under protest are deposited into a special escrow account until the protest is resolved. The statutory requirement that a protest must be filed at the time of payment is reiterated on the Protest and Claim for Refund forms. Based on the documentation you provided and county property records, payment was not made under protest for the above-mentioned instrument.

Please be advised that any taxpayer whose Claim for Refund is denied, in whole or in part, has the right to bring an action for refund of the amount so claimed and not approved against the collecting officer who received the payment and recorded the instrument. The action

RE: Intangible Recording Tax Protest and Claim for Refund for Security Deed, recorded on iii April 22, 2022 Page 2

may be filed in either the Superior Court of the county in which the instrument was recorded or in the Georgia Tax Tribunal no later than 60 days from the date of the denial and service pursuant to law.

Sincerely,
Demeneck Capotoste

Dominick Capotosto
Deputy General Counsel

cc: Po Clerk of Superior Court