January 19, 2023 Upcoming business tax filing deadlines in San Francisco and Los Angeles Local California business tax filing deadlines are quickly approaching but are commonly overlooked. As the upcoming federal and state tax filing season approaches, taxpayers should be aware of the following information on reporting and paying San Francisco and Los Angeles business taxes (as well as those in other localities throughout the state). San Francisco The due date for filing the San Francisco 2022 Annual Business Tax (SF ABT) return is on or before February 28, 2023. The SF ABT return includes the reporting and payment of the Gross Receipts Tax or Administrative Office Tax, the Homelessness Tax or the Homelessness Administrative Office Tax, the Commercial Rents Tax and the Overpaid Executive Gross Receipts Tax. San Francisco's Payroll Expense Tax, which applied in prior years, has been eliminated. Taxpayers can request a 60-day filing extension by submitting a written request and paying at least 90% of the San Francisco taxes due by the filing deadline. The SF ABT return and tax payment must be filed electronically using the city's 2022 SF ABT Portal, which has not yet been made publicly available as of the date of this Tax Alert. Additional information regarding the SF ABT is available here. In addition to the SF ABT, San Francisco also requires payment of a Business Registration Tax. Taxpayers must annually register or renew their business registration. The due date for this year's business registration or renewal is May 31, 2023. Los Angeles The deadline for filing the Los Angeles 2023 Business Tax renewal1 is February 28, 2023. Taxpayers can file their 2023 Los Angeles Business Tax renewal either by mail or electronically. The city both provides copies of its forms for download and completion in writing and allows for filing of renewal forms and payment of those taxes through its electronic filing system (with applicable instructions). Both the downloadable forms and the electronic filing system are accessible through the city's website. To be considered timely filed, a taxpayer's forms must be postmarked no later than, or electronically submitted by, 11:59 PM PST on February 28, 2023. Taxpayers can apply for a maximum filing extension of 45 days. An extension request must be made in writing, accompanied by the payment of at least 90% of the total tax due, and received or postmarked by the February 28, 2023 filing deadline. Additional information about the Los Angeles Business Tax renewal process is available on the city's website (last accessed January 11, 2023). Other California local business taxes California taxpayers should not assume that San Francisco and Los Angeles are the only municipalities that impose local business license taxes or fees. Nearly every California municipality does so, but the types of levies, the tax bases, and even the filing requirements and deadlines for filing such tax returns vary widely from locality to locality. For example, the City of Santa Monica, like neighboring Los Angeles, imposes a gross receipts tax on businesses operating in the city, but the returns and payments are not due until August 31 of each year.
Published by NTD’s Tax Technical Knowledge Services group; Jennifer A Brittenham, legal editor ____________________________ ENDNOTE 1 The Los Angeles 2023 Business Tax renewal is based on 2022 calendar year gross receipts. | |||||||||
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