MONTGOMERY, July 3, 2018 – On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. This decision struck down the requirement that a vendor must have “physical presence” in a state to be subject to state sales and use tax registration and collection requirements.

The Department of Revenue’s existing “economic nexus” rule 810-6-2-.90.03, which took effect in January 2016, will be applied prospectively for sales made on or after October 1, 2018. While this rule technically was effective January 1, 2016, its validity was in question pending the outcome of the Wayfair decision. Because Wayfair removed the constitutional impediments to the rule, it will be enforced going forward. Remote sellers with annual Alabama sales in excess of the rule’s $250,000 small seller exception should register for the Alabama Simplified Sellers Use Tax Program (SSUT) and begin collecting no later than October 1, 2018. Remote sellers seeking to comply with this existing rule and register to collect SSUT should visit https://revenue.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/SSUT-Application.pdf where they will find an application form and additional information about participation in the SSUT program.

In addition to the collection requirements for remote sellers, Ala. Act 2018-539 requires marketplace facilitators with Alabama marketplace sales in excess of $250,000 to collect tax on sales made by or on behalf of its third-party sellers or to comply with reporting and customer notification requirements. The Act mandates compliance with reporting or remitting requirements on or before January 1, 2019. However, marketplace facilitators desiring to facilitate the collection and remittance obligations of their marketplace sellers that go into effect on October 1 may begin collecting and remitting taxes on marketplace sales through the SSUT program upon completion of the application and registration process. Remote sellers who can demonstrate that a marketplace facilitator is collecting and remitting SSUT or sales tax on their Alabama sales will be relieved of the requirements imposed by rule 810-6-2-90.03.

Recent legislative changes to the SSUT, new legislative reporting requirements for online marketplaces, combined with the Supreme Court’s Wayfair decision represent unprecedented change for Alabama’s sales tax. The Department is studying these changes and intends to engage the rule making process to develop additional long-term guidance on the impact of these changes. Those rules will be developed with the input of stakeholders over the next several months and into 2019. Rules addressing both collection requirements for remote sellers and collection or reporting requirements for marketplace facilitators will be posted at the following link: https://revenue.alabama.gov/tax-policy/proposed-rule-changes/

The Alabama Department of Revenue (ADOR) has launched alabamataxamnesty.com, a website dedicated to the Alabama Tax Delinquency Amnesty Program of 2018, created by Act 2018-153.

The amnesty application period runs July 1 – Sept. 30, 2018, and applies to eligible taxes due before, or for tax periods that began before, Jan. 1, 2017. All applications must be submitted electronically through the Alabama tax amnesty website, where taxpayers can sign up to receive notifications about the program. The website also provides all the information taxpayers may need on the program and answers to frequently asked questions.

The amnesty program will be available to eligible taxpayers who have not been contacted by the department within the last two years and are not a party to a criminal investigation or litigation in any court of the United States or Alabama pending as of March 6, 2018, for nonpayment, delinquency, or fraud in relation to any Alabama taxes administered by the Department.

Most taxes administered by ADOR, with the exception of motor fuel, motor vehicle, and property taxes, are eligible for the 2018 Amnesty Program. This includes, but is not limited to, corporate and individual income, business privilege, financial institution excise, consumers use, sellers use, withholding, and sales taxes.

All penalties and interest will be waived for approved amnesty applications.

Taxpayers who believe they may have delinquent tax liabilities in Alabama should consult with their tax advisers regarding their eligibility for the tax amnesty program.

For more information on taxpayer eligibility, eligible tax types, leniency terms, the application process, and more, visit alabamataxamnesty.com or email amnesty@revenue.alabama.gov.

The Alabama Public Service unanimously voted to save Alabama Power customers $337 million over the next two years. Read the entire press release.

MONTGOMERY— Governor Kay Ivey announced today that Alabama’s Opportunity Zone nominations have received full approval from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service.

The governor submitted the state’s census-tract nominations for the Opportunity Zones program in late March, prior to the federally imposed deadline. Alabama was one of the first states to submit census-tract nominations.

“I appreciate the quick work of the U.S. Treasury Department and the IRS to approve Alabama’s nominated Opportunity Zones,” Ivey said. “Now we can take full advantage of this valuable tool provided through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to attract additional industry and jobs to our great state. We selected each Opportunity Zone with care, and with an eye toward making a positive difference with the greatest possible impact.”

Opportunity Zones are a new alternative economic development program established by Congress in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to encourage long-term, private-sector investments in eligible urban and rural communities nationwide. The program provides a federal tax incentive for investors to re-invest their unrealized capital gains into Opportunity Funds dedicated for investing in designated Opportunity Zones.

Congress empowered governors to nominate Opportunity Zones in their states by using up to 25 percent of their low-income community census tracts with a poverty rate of at least 20 percent and a median family income of less than 80 percent of the statewide or area median income.

The Governor’s Office, with the input of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs, identified and selected 158 Opportunity Zones in the state with each of Alabama’s 67 counties having at least one designated zone. Using an objective methodology that involved input from a variety of resources to determine areas where the program could be most effective, the selected zones were chosen from 629 qualifying census tracts. The selected tracts average between 1,200 and 8,000 in population and vary in size from 199 acres to 235,352 acres.

“ADECA will continue to support Governor Ivey’s efforts to ensure Alabama uses this new program to attract private-sector investment to low-income rural and urban areas of our state through federal tax deferrals,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said.

According to the U.S. Treasury Department, the qualified Opportunity Zones will retain this designation for 10 years. Investors can defer tax on any prior gains until no later than December 31, 2026, so long as the gain is reinvested in a Qualified Opportunity Fund, an investment vehicle organized to make investments in Qualified Opportunity Zones. In addition, if the investor holds the investment in the Opportunity Fund for at least 10 years, the investor would be eligible for an increase in its basis equal to the fair market value of the investment on the date that it is sold.

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Attached are a map and list of the Opportunity Zones.

Alabama Opportunity Zones Map

Alabama Opportunity Zones Census Tract List

HUNTSVILLE, March 27, 2018 – State tax obligations for business owners – licenses, sales tax, property tax, withholding, etc. – are a lot to be responsible for. To help Alabama business owners better understand and master these requirements, the Alabama Department of Revenue (ADOR) invites business owners to ADOR’s free Business Essentials for State Taxpayers (B.E.S.T.) Seminar on Tuesday, April 10, at 9 a.m. or 1 p.m. in Huntsville.

The seminar will be held at the Huntsville Taxpayer Service Center, 4920 Corporate Drive, Suite H.

B.E.S.T. Seminars help new business owners navigate through unfamiliar tax complexities while updating current business owners on tax law changes. Conducted by ADOR specialists, B.E.S.T. Seminars offer a brief but comprehensive overview of Alabama’s business taxes, the business owner’s tax obligations, the necessary forms, and other requirements. Seminar attendees also receive information on electronic filing and Alabama’s ONE SPOT (https://revenue.alabama.gov/sales-use/one-spot/), a free Internet portal that allows business taxpayers to file and pay state, county, and city sales, use, and rental taxes all in one place!

While there is no charge to attend the B.E.S.T. Seminars, reservations are required to ensure adequate space is available. You can reserve your spot online for either the 9 a.m. session or the 1 p.m. session, or you can call Dicillia Holman or Melinda Richardson at 256-837-2319, ext. 0.

For more information on B.E.S.T. Seminars and other B.E.S.T. resources, visit our website at https://revenue.alabama.gov/taxpayer-advocacy/b-e-s-t-seminars/. B.E.S.T. Seminars are two hours long plus additional time for questions and answers. Please plan to arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the scheduled seminar.

MONTGOMERY, March 23, 2018 – The Alabama Department of Revenue is extending deadlines to file tax returns for individuals and businesses who were affected by severe weather on March 19.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Alabama who have been affected by these disastrous storms,” said Revenue Commissioner Vernon Barnett. “As they recover from the challenges and hardships caused by the storms, the Department is offering this assistance to hopefully help ease some of the burden.”

Those taxpayers affected by the storms in the declared emergency areas with returns due from March 20 through April 30 have two months beyond the original deadlines to file without penalties. The counties included in the state of emergency declaration are: Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan, Randolph, Shelby, St. Clair, Talladega, Walker, and Winston.

Taxpayers seeking this relief should write “Severe Weather Relief – 2018” in red ink on any state paper return/report which relies on this filing extension relief. In regard to electronically-filed returns/reports, affected taxpayers should contact ADOR for filing guidance. Taxpayers may contact the following ADOR offices by telephone:

• Individual Income Tax: 334-353-0602

• Corporate Income Tax: 334-242-1200

• Pass-through Entities: 334-242-1033

• Sales and Use Tax: 334-242-1490

• Business Privilege Tax: 334-353-7923

• Withholding Tax: 334-242-1300

• Business and License Tax: 334-242-9600

• Motor Vehicle: 334-242-9000

In addition, taxpayers in areas not specifically designated in the state of emergency declaration who encounter difficulty filing on time due to weather-related circumstances associated with the March 19 storms may be eligible to request a waiver of late-filing and late-payment penalties after providing appropriate documentation to ADOR.