Ezel / Tax Rulings / VA
VA P.D. 18-205 Tangible Personal Property Tax 2018-12-10

Can the Department of Taxation hear an appeal of a locality's personal property (car) tax on an individual's personal vehicle?

Short answer: No -- the Department has no jurisdiction over this appeal. A taxpayer appealed a city's 2018 tangible personal property tax on his personal vehicle, arguing it should be adjusted because he left Virginia for another state in May 2018 under military orders. The Department issued a notice of jurisdiction explaining that under Va. Code § 58.1-3983.1 D its authority over local tax appeals is limited to final local determinations on local business and mobile property taxes, which do not include personal property taxes assessed against individuals' personal vehicles. So the Department cannot hear the appeal. The taxpayer's remedy is to appeal directly to the locality under Va. Code § 58.1-3980 or to the circuit court under Va. Code § 58.1-3984. The Department expressed no view on the merits of the underlying car-tax assessment.

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This page answers the general question as of 2018. Ezel answers yours, under current Virginia tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 2018
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This is an official published notice of jurisdiction from the Virginia Tax Commissioner, redacted for publication. It decides only that the Department lacks jurisdiction over this type of appeal; it does not decide whether the car-tax assessment is correct. The local tangible personal property (car) tax is a local tax imposed and administered by the locality's commissioner of the revenue, not by the Department, so appeals go to the locality (Va. Code § 58.1-3980) or the circuit court (Va. Code § 58.1-3984). This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Virginia tax professional or the local commissioner of the revenue about your specific situation.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.
View original ruling (PDF)

Plain-English summary

A taxpayer appealed a city's 2018 tangible personal property tax on his personal vehicle to the Department, arguing it should be adjusted because he left Virginia for another state in May 2018 under military orders.

The Department issued a notice of jurisdiction: it cannot hear this appeal.

  • The Department's local-tax appeal power is narrow. Under Va. Code § 58.1-3983.1 D, the Department may hear appeals only of final local determinations on local business and mobile property taxes.
  • A personal car isn't "business or mobile property." A personal property tax assessed against an individual's personal vehicle is not a business or mobile property tax, so it falls outside the Department's jurisdiction.
  • Where to go instead. The taxpayer may appeal directly to the locality under Va. Code § 58.1-3980, or to the circuit court under Va. Code § 58.1-3984.

The Department gave no opinion on the merits of the assessment (including the military-relocation argument) -- only on jurisdiction.

What this means for you

The Department is not the venue for a personal car-tax dispute. For a locality's tax on your personal vehicle, the Tax Commissioner cannot help; that route is reserved for local business and mobile property taxes.

Use the local or court route -- and mind the deadlines. File a correction application with the locality (§ 58.1-3980) or appeal to the circuit court (§ 58.1-3984). Each has its own time limits.

Military relocation may still matter -- just to the right decision-maker. Arguments about leaving Virginia under military orders (and any Servicemembers Civil Relief Act protection) belong before the locality or the court, not the Department.

Common questions

Q: Why won't the Department hear my car-tax appeal?

A: Its local-tax jurisdiction under § 58.1-3983.1 D covers only local business and mobile property taxes -- not personal property tax on an individual's personal vehicle.

Q: So where do I go?

A: To the locality under § 58.1-3980, or to the circuit court under § 58.1-3984.

Q: Did the Department decide whether I owe the tax?

A: No. It ruled only that it lacks jurisdiction; it took no position on the assessment's correctness or the military-relocation argument.

Citations and references

  • Va. Code § 58.1-3983.1 -- limits the Department's local-tax appeal jurisdiction to local business and mobile property taxes
  • Va. Code § 58.1-3980 -- application to the locality to correct an erroneous local assessment
  • Va. Code § 58.1-3984 -- appeal of a local assessment to the circuit court
  • P.D. 17-142 (8/7/2017) -- prior document on the scope of the Department's local-tax jurisdiction

Source

Original ruling text

December 10, 2018

Re: Appeal of Personal Property Tax Assessment

Taxpayer: *

Locality Assessing Tax: *

Local Tangible Personal Property Tax

Dear *:

This notice of jurisdiction is issued upon the administrative appeal filed by you (the “Taxpayer”) with the Department of Taxation (the “Department”). The Taxpayer seeks correction of an assessment of tangible personal property tax issued by the * (the “City”) for the 2018 tax year.

The following determination is based on the facts presented to the Department summarized below. The Code of Virginia sections and public document cited are available on-line in the Laws, Rules and Decisions section of the Department’s web site, located at www.tax.virginia.gov .

FACTS

The City issued an assessment of tangible personal property tax on the Taxpayer’s personal vehicle for the 2018 tax year. The Taxpayer appealed to the Department, contending the assessment should be adjusted because he left Virginia for * (State A) in May 2018 pursuant to military orders.

ANALYSIS

Under Virginia Code § 58.1-3983.1 D, the Department’s jurisdiction over appeals and rulings of local taxes is limited to final local determinations concerning local business and mobile property tax assessments. See Public Document (P.D.) 17-142 (8/7/2017). Neither business nor mobile property taxes include tangible personal property taxes assessed against individuals’ personal vehicles.

DETERMINATION

Based on applicable law, an assessment of tangible personal property tax on a personal vehicle is not an assessment of tax over which the Department has jurisdiction to hear an appeal. The Taxpayer may appeal an assessment of tangible personal property tax either directly to the locality pursuant to Virginia Code § 58.1-3980, or to the circuit court under the provisions of Virginia Code § 58.1-3984.

If you have any questions regarding this determination, you may contact * in the Department’s Office of Tax Policy, Appeals and Rulings, at ***.

Sincerely,

Craig M. Burns

Tax Commissioner

AR/1861.M

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