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TTB NEWSLETTER | Weekly News

November 1, 2019

IN THIS ISSUE

Greetings! This week’s top news includes how industry members impacted by the recent wildfires in California may obtain a waiver of penalties for not timely filing or paying excise taxes, and tips for using the smart form version of the TTB excise tax return.

WAIVER OF EXCISE TAX PENALTIES FOR BUSINESSES AFFECTED BY CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

A natural disaster, such as a hurricane, tornado, wildfire, or flood, may impact a business’s ability to timely file returns and pay or deposit federal excise taxes administered by TTB.  In recognition of this, we may waive late filing, payment, or deposit penalties (NOTE: There is no provision in the law for the waiver of tax liabilities or interest on unpaid or late-paid taxes).

To qualify for a waiver, a taxpayer must contact the National Revenue Center and demonstrate that their inability to timely file, pay, or deposit was due to reasonable cause and not to willful neglect. In making the determination, we will consider all factors, including any effects of the natural disaster.

Contact the TTB National Revenue Center in any of the following ways:

• By telephone (toll free)
  877-882-3277
• Via online inquiry
  Use the National Revenue Center Contact Form, and select “disaster relief question”
• By mail
  550 Main Street, Room 8002
  Cincinnati, OH 45202-5215

For additional information see our Disaster Relief page.

TTB EXCISE TAX SMART FORM AND USER GUIDE

A smart form is simply an interactive form that has built-in logic and automation features that make it easier to complete the form. These logical features recognize certain common errors and attempts to prevent you from making those errors.

The TTB Smart Form User Guide  gives a description of the functionality and step by step instructions for completing smart form version of the TTB excise tax return (TTB F 5000.24sm).

We recommend that you use the smart version of the tax return to avoid math and other types of common errors when paying your excise taxes.

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