§ 7488. Refunds; petitions for refunds

(a) At any time within three years after the date a return is required to be filed under this chapter, or six months after a refund was received from the United States with respect to an estate or gift tax liability, or an amount of taxable gifts or of a taxable estate under the laws of the United States, reported in a return filed under the laws of the United States, whichever is later, a taxpayer may petition the Commissioner for the refund of all or any part of the amount of tax paid with respect to the return. Unless the period is extended by agreement of the Commissioner and the taxpayer, the Commissioner shall thereafter, upon notice to the taxpayer, hold a hearing on the claim and shall notify the taxpayer of his or her determination of the claim within 30 days of the hearing. The failure of the Commissioner to refund the amount claimed by a taxpayer within six months of the date of the petition for the refund, under this subsection, shall be considered to be a notification to the taxpayer of the Commissioner’s determination concerning the claim. The notification shall be considered to have been given on the date of the expiration of the six-month period.

(b) If the Commissioner determines, on a petition for refund or otherwise, that a taxpayer has paid an amount of tax under this chapter that, as of the date of the determination, exceeds the amount of tax liability owing from the taxpayer to the State with respect to the current and all preceding taxable years, under any provision of this title, the Commissioner shall forthwith refund the excess amount to the taxpayer together with interest at the rate per annum established pursuant to section 3108 of this title. That interest shall be computed from the latest of 45 days after the date the return was filed or was due, including any extensions of time thereto or, if the taxpayer filed an amended return or otherwise requested a refund, 45 days after the date the petition or amended return was filed. (Added 1969, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. date, see note under § 7401 of this title; amended 1979, No. 105 (Adj. Sess.), § 48; 1993, No. 49, § 15, eff. May 28, 1993; 2009, No. 160 (Adj. Sess.), § 32; 2013, No. 73, § 16, eff. June 5, 2013.)