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5700-5704 Refunds: General Information

5700. BY ORDER OF BOARD
By order of the board of supervisors, any taxes, including penalties, interest and costs (Rev. & Tax. Code §5096), shall be refunded if they are:

1) Paid more than once;

2) Erroneously or illegally collected;

3) Illegally assessed or levied;

4) Paid on an assessment in excess of the ratio of assessed value to the full value of the property, due to the assessor's error;

5) Paid on an assessment of improvements that did not exist on the lien date; or

6) Collected on behalf of a special district from a taxpayer whose property was annexed to a city but not detached from the first public agency, due to error or inadvertence (Rev. & Tax. Code §§5096, 5096.1).

5701. DUPLICATE OR EXCESS PAYMENT

1) Within 90 days after the last payment and without other approval, the tax collector may refund any taxes, including penalties, interest and costs (Rev. & Tax. Code §4916), paid more than once, or

2) If the amount paid exceeds the amount due as shown in the records, the tax collector or the auditor may make such refunds within four years after the date of payment (Rev. & Tax. Code §5097.2). A request should be made to have the certificate returned, for either cancellation or the issuance of a corrected certificate.

5702. APPLICATION OF REFUND TO FUTURE TAX LIABILITIES
A taxpayer may enter into an agreement with the county to offset the refund amount against future tax liabilities. Interest accrues on the refund amount until it has been fully offset (Rev. & Tax. Code §5103).

5703. REDEMPTION OF WRONG PROPERTY
See M-5500, M-5505 and M-5602.

5704. AMOUNT OF $10 OR LESS
If an overage fund has been established (M-5321), any overpayment of $10 or less may be deposited in this fund in lieu of making a refund (Gov. Code §29375.1).