Thank You For Waiting....

The Georgia Department of Revenue is notoriuos for being difficult to reach. This year may be the worst of all. The recorded message that assures you that your call is very important routinely warns callers that the wait time is greater than 45 minutes and urges you to seek information in some other manner.

For those of us that need to speak to a human directly, a 45 minute wait would be welcomed. So far this tax season I have had waits of 3 hours, 1hour 45 minutes and 1 hour 15 minutes. To be fair, speaker phones allow me to continue working so that my day isn't ground to a halt.

There are several other recorded messages with general information such as:

• If you have a question about a payment made through e-file and e-pay systems, please call 1-800-272-9829. This is a third party vendor that handles procesing payments for Georgia as well as other states.
• If you have questions about withholding on non-resident distributions, submit those questions in writing via fax to 404-471-4326. Be sure to include your FEIN or Georgia withholding identification number. The form to use for non-resident withholding is G-2-A. It's funny that they request questions to be submitted in writing. My experience is that you can almost never reach anyone by phone with the knowledge or authority to answer any questions of substance. The best you can usually do is find an unpublished fax or phone number of someone who can.
• For questions about withholding refunds submit form IT-550 to fax number 404-417-2426. Please allow 6-8 weeks for processing. Form IT-550 is used to request a refund for Georgia withholding that was erroneously submitted. This form as well as the form for amending sales taxes has a link in the e-file/e-pay system which should allow you to submit these electronically. However, the link always seems to be broken, and the time or two I've asked a DOR employee about this they admit that the electronic system doesn't work as well as it should.
• If you have received a notice regarding unpaid taxes and have proof of payment, please submit a copy of the front and back of the check along with the notice to fax number 404-417-4327. This is may favorite recorded message. For some time, Georgia has had difficulty with properly crediting tax payments to taxpayers' accounts. No fewer than 10 times a year, I have a client who receives a notice regarding a tax liability that has already been paid. In almost all cases, the proper identification number is clearly written on the front of the check and the back is endorsed by the Georgia DOR. It's as if the DOR is so overwhelmed around deadine days that it's all it can do to deposit the checks. It leaves the burden of proof for payment on the taxpayer, once again raising the cost of compliance.

None of this is going to get any better in the very near future, as the state is downsizing the DOR in the midst of declining revenues. If you must make a phone call, make sure you have a couple hours worth of something productive to do while you wait.