N.D. property tax relief certificates have expiration date

North Dakota Tax Commissioner Cory Fong said Tuesday that taxpayers who filed for property tax relief and received a Property Tax Relief Certificate must redeem the certificate before the expiration date.

"Many North Dakota property owners received a Property Tax Relief Certificate from the Tax Department earlier this year when they claimed the property tax credit on their state income tax return," said Fong. "We are reminding those property owners to be sure to redeem the certificate before it expires."

The 2007 Legislature passed a law providing property tax relief to North Dakota property owners. To receive the relief, property owners claim the property tax relief income tax credit on their North Dakota income tax return. The credit allowed many property owners to reduce their income tax liability. Thousands of property owners whose credit exceeded their income tax liability received a property tax relief certificate for the amount of the unused credit.

"Property owners who received a certificate have one year from the date the certificate is issued to redeem it before it expires," Fong said.

Depending on the county’s policy, certificate holders have one or both of the following options to consider in redeeming their property tax relief certificate:

1. Certificate holders may receive a payment (in the form of a check) from the county treasurer’s office at any time before the expiration date.

Or

2. Certificate holders may reduce their property tax bill that is due in 2009 by presenting the certificate to the county treasurer’s office at the time they would normally pay their property tax.

Property owners should check with their county treasurer’s office to see which options are available. The Tax Department’s Web site also provides information about the certificate treatment options available for each county.

So far, property owners have received more than $41 million in total property tax relief. Of that, the department has issued more than 29,000 Property Tax Relief Certificates totaling nearly $6 million in property tax relief. Fong said nearly 4,000 (14 percent) of the certificates have not yet been redeemed.

Property owners who have not redeemed their certificate because it is lost or misplaced should contact the Tax Department at 701-328-1247 or toll-free 877-328-7088 (select option 5) to request a replacement.

Information about the Property Tax Relief Income Tax Credit is available on the Tax Department Web site at http://www.nd.gov/tax/ or e-mail the Tax Department at propertytaxrelief@nd.gov.

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