§ 521 — Examination of return

(a)Deficiency or overpayment. —As soon as practicable after any return is filed, the Director shall examine it to determine the correct amount of tax. If the Director finds that the amount of tax shown on the return is less than the correct amount, the Director shall notify the taxpayer in writing of the amount of the deficiency proposed to be assessed. If the Director finds that the tax that has been paid by the taxpayer is more than the correct amount, the Director shall credit the overpayment against any taxes to which this chapter applies and which are due to this State by the taxpayer and shall refund the difference to the taxpayer.

(b)No return filed. —If the taxpayer fails to file any return of tax required to be filed, the Director shall estimate from any available information the taxpayer’s taxable amount, and the tax thereon, and shall notify the taxpayer in writing of the amount proposed to be assessed against the taxpayer as a deficiency.

(c)Notice of proposed assessment. —A notice of proposed assessment shall:

(1) Be in writing,

(2) State that tax, interest, penalty, additional amount, or addition to tax is proposed for assessment and is due, and

(3) Set forth the amount and the reason for the proposed assessment.

Such notice shall be sent by mail to the taxpayer at the taxpayer’s last known address within the time limit provided by § 531 of this title. If the amount of the proposed assessment exceeds the applicable threshold of $1,000, such notice shall be sent by certified or registered mail. (The applicable threshold in this paragraph (c)(3) is subject to annual adjustment as more fully set forth in § 515 of this title.) In the case of a joint return of personal income tax, a notice of proposed assessment shall be a single joint notice, except that if the Director is notified by either spouse in writing that separate addresses have been established, the Director shall mail a joint notice to each spouse at each such address. In the case of a combined separate return of personal income tax, a single notice of proposed assessment shall be sent by the Director to the taxpayers’ last known address except that, if the Director is notified by either spouse in writing that separate addresses have been established, the Director shall mail separate notices to each spouse, using reasonable means to allocate the proposed assessment between the spouses. If the taxpayer is deceased, under a legal disability or is a corporation which has terminated its existence, a notice of proposed assessment shall be mailed to such taxpayer’s last known address, except that if the Director has received notice of the existence of a fiduciary relationship with respect to such taxpayer, such notice shall be mailed to the last known address of such fiduciary. Except where the Director determines that collection would be jeopardized by delay, no notice of proposed assessment of any tax shall be mailed prior to the last date, including any date fixed by extension, prescribed for the payment of such tax.

(d)Supplemental notice of proposed assessment. —The Director may, at any time within the period prescribed for issuance of a notice of proposed assessment, issue a supplemental notice of proposed assessment, subject to the other provisions of this section, whenever it is found that any notice is imperfect or incomplete in any material respect. Any reference in this title to a notice of proposed assessment shall be deemed to include a reference to a supplemental notice of proposed assessment issued under the authority of this subsection.