Local municipal tax filing deadlines are quickly approaching and are commonly overlooked. In preparation for the upcoming federal and state filing season, please keep in mind the following information pertaining to Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Los Angeles

The Los Angeles Business Tax is due February 28, 2017. Taxpayers may file their 2017 Business Tax Renewal form either by mail or electronically. The city provides both copies of its forms for download and completion as well as access to an electronic filing system (with applicable instructions) on its website at finance.lacity.org. To be considered timely filed, a taxpayer must postmark or electronically file the forms no later than 11:59 pm PST on February 28, 2017. Interest and penalty will be assessed starting March 1, 2017.

Taxpayers can apply for a maximum filing extension of 45 days. An extension request must be made in writing, accompanied by at least 90% of the total tax due, and received or postmarked by the February 28, 2017 filing deadline.

Additional information about the Los Angeles Business Tax renewal process is available (last accessed January 31, 2017.)

San Francisco

The San Francisco's Gross Receipts Tax is due on or before February 28, 2017. Taxpayers can request a 60-day extension provided they file the request in writing and pay at least 90% of the tax due by the filing deadline.

In addition to the Gross Receipts Tax, San Francisco also requires payment of a Business Registration Fee. Taxpayers must register or renew their business registration every year. The due date for registration or renewal is May 31, 2017. The Business Registration Fee may be filed online at the San Francisco Treasurer's website (last accessed January 31, 2017).

Implications

By no means should taxpayers assume that Los Angeles and San Francisco are the only municipalities imposing local business license taxes. Nearly every California municipality does and the variety of these levies varies widely from locality to locality. As an example, the City of Santa Monica imposes such a tax on gross receipts but, unlike the San Francisco or Los Angeles levies, returns and payments are due August 31. Moreover, unlike state or local income taxes in other states, these taxes do not except from payment business entities based on form. That is, partnerships and even limited liability companies that are treated as pass-through entities for federal and even California state taxes (or even disregarded altogether) could be directly liable for the myriad of California local taxes.

If your business is active in California, especially in the larger municipalities, it's a best practice to assume that some type of business license tax applies. Usually information about these special and unique city taxes can be obtained from the relevant municipality's webpage. EY California tax professionals stand ready to assist businesses both in finding these business license taxes and in complying with the applicable payment and filing requirements.

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