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Department of Taxation and Finance

Respond to your letter

Respond to your letter

  1. Review our printer-friendly checklist that outlines how to respond.
  2. Log in or create your Individual Online Services account.
  3. Select the ≡ Services menu, then choose Respond to department notice. 

Find my letter

What to do while you're waiting

The best way to communicate with the Tax Department about your return is to request electronic communications for both Bills and Related Notices and Other Notifications. Simply:

  1. Log in to (or create) your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select your name in the upper right-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Preferences, then choose Electronic communications from the expanded menu.
  4. On the Electronic Communications page, check the boxes next to Bills and Related Notices and Other Notifications.

When you select both options, we'll email you when we issue your refund, and alert you to any future correspondence.

Why you received a letter

If you receive a letter from us asking for documentation to support what you claimed on your return, it doesn't mean that you did anything wrong. It's just an extra step we take to ensure refunds go out to only those who are entitled to them. Our goal is to stop questionable refunds before they go out the door, not to delay your refund.

Select a dropdown to learn how to respond to your particular letter. You can:

Note: If you received a letter reminding you to file a previous year's income tax return (Form AU-222), see Respond to a reminder to file an income tax return to review and respond to your letter online.

If your 2018 refund status begins We sent you a letter requesting information to verify the amount of taxes withheld from wages you may have claimed on your return, we have mailed you a request for wage and withholding information. Note: We updated this status to provide additional information; if you already responded and it has been more than 90 days since you submitted your response online, call 518-457-2751.

To respond online, view your letter and the checklist of required documentation below, then locate your document locator number (DLN):

  • in the upper right-hand corner of the letter you received, or
  • in your Individual Online Services account:
    1. Log in to your Online Services account (or create an account, if you don't have one).
    2. From your Account Summary homepage, select 12/31/2018 as the filing period in the Personal income tax details section. The summary of your 2018 filings will display.
    3. Locate the confirmation number for your return; it begins with PF, PH or PU and is followed by 10 digits. This is the same as your DLN.

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received and the checklists for responding to your letter to ensure you include everything we need in your response:
  3. Gather the documents we requested.
  4. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
      

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received:
  3. Review both checklists about responding to your letter to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received:
  3. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of college tuition expenses to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter and questionnaire you received: DTF-973.52 and DTF-973.52-ATT.
  3. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of self-employment income to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received: DTF-973.73.
  3. Review both checklists about responding to your letter to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received: DTF-973.66.
  3. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of business loss to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in or create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received: DTF-973.65.
  3. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of rental loss to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of taxi, limousine, or self-employed driver income and expenses to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  3. Gather the documents we requested.
  4. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in or create account

Get ready to respond!

  1. Locate the form number of your letter in its bottom left-hand corner.
  2. View the letter you received: DTF-973.55.
  3. Review our Checklist for acceptable proof of itemized deductions to ensure you include everything we need in your response.
  4. Gather the documents we requested.
  5. Make digital copies of your documents. Hint: You don’t need a scanner to make a copy; use your smartphone to take and share a clear and legible picture instead!
     

Ready to respond?

  1. Log in to your Individual Online Services account.
  2. Select the ≡ Services menu in the upper left-hand corner of your Account Summary homepage.
  3. Select Respond to department notice from the expanded menu.

Log in  or  Create account

Demo: Respond to a Department Notice

Demo: Individual Account Creation

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