Filing a Claim for Refund (Publication 117)

If you believe you have paid more taxes or fees (tax) than you owe, you may file a claim for refund. This publication explains how to file a claim and what you should expect.

How do I File a Claim?

You may file a claim for refund using CDTFA’s online services. To submit a claim for refund, simply login using your username and password and click on the account for which you want to request a refund. Click on the More link under the I Want To section. Then select the Submit a Claim for Refund link and follow the prompts.

You may also file a claim for refund using a CDTFA-101, Claim for Refund or Credit, or by sending us a letter. Your claim must state all of the following:

  • The specific reasons you paid too much tax.
  • The amount of tax you overpaid. If you're not yet sure of the amount, you may file for an unspecified amount.
  • The reporting period or periods for which you paid too much tax. Your claim can cover more than one reporting period.

You must sign and date your claim. Please include your phone number so that we can contact you if we have questions or need more information. To expedite the processing of your claim, you should send supporting documents such as copies of invoices or exemption certificates and an amended return(s) along with your claim. Please see the Required Information section for more information.

Where Do I Send My Claim?

Paper claims for refund may be submitted as follows:

Send your sales and use tax claim for refund and supporting documents, including amended returns to:

Audit Determination and Refund Section, MIC:39
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
PO Box 942879
Sacramento, CA 94279-0039

For certified mail or delivery service:

Audit Determination and Refund Section, MIC:39
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
651 Bannon Street, Suite 100, Sacramento, CA 95811

Send your special tax and fee claim for refund and supporting documents to the address below excluding claims for Diesel Fuel Tax Fee, eWaste Fee, Lead-Acid Battery Fee, Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax, or Tax on Insurers. See the Program Specific Guidelines section for an explanation of the exceptions.

Appeals and Data Analysis Branch, MIC:33
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
PO Box 942879
Sacramento, CA 94279-0033

For certified mail or delivery service:

Appeals and Data Analysis Branch, MIC:33
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
651 Bannon Street, Suite 100, Sacramento, CA 95811

What is the Deadline for Filing a Claim for Refund?

If you believe you have paid more tax than you owe, and you wish to be refunded, you must file a timely claim for refund, otherwise the CDTFA is unable to issue a refund. Whichever of the following dates occurs last is your deadline to file a timely claim for refund:

  • Three years from the due date of the return on which you paid too much tax (except for tax on insurers). Filing an application for registration of your vehicle with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is generally considered a return and relieves you of further obligation to file with the CDTFA.
  • Six months from the date you overpaid tax.
  • Six months from the date a determination (billing) became final, for most programs.
  • Three years from the date we collected an involuntary payment, such as from a levy or lien (except for Motor Vehicle Fuels Tax and Tax on Insurers as the collection for these tax programs are handled by the State Controller’s Office).

Be sure to file your claim for refund by the applicable deadline. If you don't file on time, you will not receive a refund, even if you paid too much tax.

Some special tax and fee programs, including fuel tax programs, have special requirements. Be sure to review the Program Specific Guidelines section for more information.

Installment Payments Made Toward a Billing

Beginning January 1, 2017, if you are making installment payments on a final Notice of Determination (billing) and are disputing your tax liability, you may file one timely claim for refund to cover all future payments applied to that billing, and any prior payments that remain within the applicable statute of limitations. If you are disputing more than one billing, you must file a timely claim for refund for each separate billing.

Claim for Refund or Credit for Tax Paid to DMV

If you purchase a vehicle through a private-party sale (not from a registered dealer) you are required to register it with the DMV. Typically, the DMV will charge you use tax on the transaction based upon the address of the location where the vehicle is registered. In some cases, the wrong tax rate may be charged when the address is based upon a ZIP Code that crosses a city or county line. You may want to verify your tax rate prior to going to DMV to ensure the correct amount of tax is charged.

To verify your tax rate, use the interactive map and enter the address where the vehicle was registered. Compare this rate to the rate you were charged when you registered the vehicle. If you paid the wrong amount to the DMV, you may file a claim for refund and submit it to the CDTFA.

Our California City & County Sales & Use Tax Rates page on our website provides tax rate information and also explains recent tax rate changes, the history of sales and use tax rates, rates and effective dates of district taxes, and the combined sales, use, and district tax rate in certain cities and communities in California.

Additionally, some cities have developed a database of addresses available to assist retailers and consumers in identifying addresses located within the special taxing jurisdictions. In cooperation with these cities, the CDTFA website provides links to their address databases. If you have questions about the addresses, you should contact the cities directly.

Example: You register your car at your home in Fresno County. You live near, but not in, the City of Reedley, which has a special tax district. Homes in the City of Reedley have the same ZIP Code as your home in Fresno. If the use tax rate charged by the DMV includes the Reedley district tax, you are not liable for that district tax, and are entitled to a refund of the overpaid district tax.

If the DMV charges you a district tax for which you are not liable (for example, your address is located outside the district tax boundary), as described above, you have two options. You can:

  • Pay the correct tax at a CDTFA office and obtain a tax clearance before you register your vehicle with the DMV, or
  • Pay the tax requested by the DMV and file a claim for refund for any overpaid district tax and submit it to the CDTFA.

To file a claim for refund on overpaid use tax to the DMV, please follow these steps:

  • Verify the correct tax rate for the address where your vehicle is registered.
  • Compare this rate to the rate you were charged at the time of registration with DMV.
  • If you were in fact overcharged, please download and submit a completed CDTFA-101-DMV, Claim for Refund or Credit for Tax Paid to DMV, and your supporting documentation to the CDTFA to request your refund.

Submit your completed CDTFA-101-DMV form and supporting documentation to any CDTFA office or the CDTFA’s Consumer Use Tax Section at:

Consumer Use Tax Section, MIC:37
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
PO Box 942879
Sacramento, CA 94279-0037

Please see publication 52, Vehicles and Vessels: Use Tax, or call our CDTFA’s Customer Service Center at 1‑800‑400‑7115  (TTY:711) for assistance.

Revision December 2019