The Essence of Tax Reporting Requirements
Tax reporting interweaves two directions: the declarations you submit and the approaches of the tax authority — tax demands, requests for information and the procedure for refunding overpaid amounts. The Tax Code of Georgia gives these relations clear forms and deadlines, and knowing them protects both your time and your money. This page explains how these mechanisms operate and in which cases you may claim a refund of an overpaid amount.
The Tax Demand and Its Grounds
A tax demand is an individual administrative-legal act of the tax authority, the fulfilment of which is mandatory. The authority must present a tax demand to a person where one of the following grounds exists: an assessment of a tax whose computation is the authority's duty; a decision of the authority on the assessment of a tax or the imposition of a sanction, or a record of a tax offence; a decision on directing recovery against a third person; or a decision of a customs authority on the assessment of import duties or a customs sanction. A tax demand is considered fulfilled from the moment of payment of the amount indicated in it. The procedure for issuing the demand is determined in detail by the Minister of Finance of Georgia, so the form and content of the demand always fit the framework established by law — and the taxpayer may verify whether the act is properly composed and matches the indicated grounds.
The Refund of Overpaid Amounts
Where the amount of taxes or sanctions paid exceeds the amount charged, the tax authority, on the request of the taxpayer, returns the overpaid amount no later than 1 month from the submission of the request. Where the paid amount exceeds recognized tax debt, the excess is directed to cover subsequently charged and recognized debts. A special case is an amount incorrectly written off by an incasso order: it is returned to the taxpayer no later than 15 days from the application. In individual cases, where declarations are filed electronically, an automatic refund of the overpaid amount is also possible; in addition, by decision of the head of the Revenue Service, an overpaid amount may in defined cases be returned even without a request — though relying on that assumption instead of filing your own request is unwise, since the terms and conditions are determined separately. A taxpayer's request is considered fulfilled from the moment of payment of the requested amount; if the authority considers the request groundless, it must present a reasoned objection within 20 days of its receipt, and the person may appeal that objection.