# State Sales And Use tax return **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 21, 2016, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810 "2016-03-21T23:43:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2016, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/1 "2016-03-21T23:43:39Z")
Had a strange Situation with my sales tax return today. I get two letters in the mail from the state DOR. First letter (dated March 11): You failed to pay your state tax, please enclose $XXXX to settle up. Second Letter (dated March 12): A check for the amount I apparently overpayed in sales tax. Seems strange to me that the DOR completely flip flopped on my sales tax status over the course of 24 hours. Should I contact them to see what’s going on? This is only my second year filing a sales tax return, is this a normal occurance? _you are not my tax attorney, blah blah_ Just looking for feedback to see if I should spend all day tomorrow on hold. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/2 "2016-03-22T00:29:41Z")
1. Which state? 2. What sort of business are you in, W2 income or do you (also) run a business? 3. I would contact them, using the number found through Google and not printed on the letter. Such a letter may be legit, but I would get the official word. 4. It’s not clear: did you try to voluntarily pay a Use tax? 5. Without seeing the letters, and if #4 is true, it sounds like letter 1 reflects that they believe you probably made more online purchases than you claimed, and letter 2 means for the amount you claimed, a calculation or other error was made (by you or by them), and here’s a refund. ---
**Author:** ![NeonMadman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/58f4c7/32.png) [@NeonMadman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeonMadman)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/3 "2016-03-22T15:31:59Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > 1. I would contact them, using the number found through Google and not printed on the letter. Such a letter may be legit, but I would get the official word. This. It’s possible that letter #1 could be from a scammer, but don’t count on it. Check it out in the manner suggested. ---
**Author:** ![sbunny8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@sbunny8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sbunny8)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/4 "2016-03-22T18:57:27Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > Had a strange Situation with my sales tax return today. > I get two letters in the mail from the state DOR. > First letter (dated March 11): > You failed to pay your state tax, please enclose $XXXX to settle up. > Second Letter (dated March 12): > A check for the amount I apparently overpaid in sales tax. > Seems strange to me that the DOR completely flip flopped on my sales tax status over the course of 24 hours. Here’s a few possibilities that come to my mind: [A] They have you listed under two different account numbers. You overpaid on one account and the other shows no payment received at all. \*\* The refund is from 2015 Q3 and the demand for payment is for 2015 Q4. [C] Your check got processed on March 11th, after they had already printed the first letter, and the check was for too much money. > [@Mrdeals](#): > > Should I contact them to see what’s going on? Hell yes. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/5 "2016-03-22T19:12:48Z")
Definitely contact them. It could be as simple as two departments generating two letters at different times and maybe there’s no problem, but it could also be much more complicated. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/6 "2016-03-22T19:18:53Z")
> [@sbunny8](#): > > > [@Mrdeals](#): > > > > Should I contact them to see what’s going on? > > Hell yes. I disagree. I think the OP should just shred the letters and pretend he never saw them. Nothing bad could _possibly_ result from doing so. And even if it does, tell them \*\*Dewey Finn \*\*said that was the right thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/7 "2016-03-22T20:05:20Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I disagree. I think the OP should just shred the letters and pretend he never saw them. Nothing bad could _possibly_ result from doing so. And even if it does, tell them \*\*Dewey Finn \*\*said that was the right thing to do. Tell Messrs. Cheatem & Howe I said hello. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/8 "2016-03-22T20:05:38Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > Should I contact them to see what’s going on? 😕:dubious: Is this a trick question? **thelurkinghorror** nailed it in one: get their phone number from the internet (not from the docs you received in the mail) and give them a call. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/9 "2016-03-22T21:39:28Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > First letter (dated March 11): > > You failed to pay your state tax, please enclose $XXXX to settle up. > > Second Letter (dated March 12): > > A check for the amount I apparently overpayed in sales tax. It wouldn’t surprise me if these letters were generated by two different employees. My guess would be that the payment was posted a bit late (perhaps due to some backup in the office), just a bit after their program triggered the first letter. If you have evidence showing you filed/paid for the given period, the first letter is moot. ---
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/10 "2016-03-22T22:39:03Z")
Anyone interested in what happened? So is the DOR 🙂 My check cleared on Jan. 22. The first letter had no business being made, (so possibly a scammer?) The refund check is the real deal though ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/11 "2016-03-22T23:21:30Z")
So how long did you spend on hold and how nice and/or knowledgeable was/wasn’t the person you talked to? Were you surprised? ---
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2016, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/12 "2016-03-22T23:57:47Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > So how long did you spend on hold and how nice and/or knowledgeable was/wasn’t the person you talked to? Were you surprised? I was pleasantly surprised! Probably spent 10 minutes total on hold. The person was nice, and knowledgable enough to give me a yes or no answer within one minute. Overall I would give the State tax collectors two thumbs up. (that was a hard sentence to type!) ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/13 "2016-03-23T03:10:35Z")
What kind of scam would this be? For people who will mail a check like anywhere? ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/14 "2016-03-23T05:46:39Z")
> [@Mrdeals](#): > > Overall I would give the State tax collectors two thumbs up. (that was a hard sentence to type!) Because it’s hard to type without using your thumbs? ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/15 "2016-03-23T05:47:40Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > What kind of scam would this be? For people who will mail a check like anywhere? Same as the telephone ones – scare someone with diminished faculties. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2016, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/16 "2016-03-23T13:52:28Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > What kind of scam would this be? For people who will mail a check like anywhere? In response to an official-looking letter, yes. You’d be surprised what a significant fraction of the population that is. I know a law firm that was caught out by a related scam. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2016, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/state-sales-and-use-tax-return/749810/17 "2016-03-25T13:43:04Z")
doesn’t even have to be official looking. People seem more than willing to pay others for no good reason. My wife and I get spam almost every day enclosing “invoices” as if we were businesses. The virus detectors flag all the attachments so far. My father assured me that back in the day a popular idea was to put an ad in the paper saying in toto: “LAST CHANCE! send $5 to …” It got so bad that the US Postal Service defined the idea as a scam and arrested anyone picking up the payments. I am sure that if one did the same thing on Facebook today you would be inundated with envelopes with $5 bills.