Delaware’s Department of Labor (DOL) is trying to sort out an issue that led some First State employers to receive erroneous tax notices.
The notices came from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), claiming unpaid payroll taxes from 2016.
The director of the Department of Labor’s Division of Unemployment Insurance Darryl Scott says each year the division submits certificates of good-standing to the IRS, which report the wages, the tax rate, and the unemployment tax assessment employers paid to the IRS. The IRS then compares that information with what’s reported to them directly by those same employers.
We did submit our original file for 2016 to the IRS and there was an issue with the file. We submitted a second file that was successfully processed, but as part of the IRS processing, they identified discrepancies in the information we report and the information that they have,” Scott said.
Scott says it appears the notices employers received are a result of the discrepancies identified by the IRS and not to the original file transmission error.
He notes the state is aware some employers are now hearing from the IRS collection department and some are paying to avoid any further notices from the IRS.
Scott says payments should not be made on the 2016 notices.
“We are preparing a communication to all registered Delaware employers to give them an update on this, make sure they understand the need to respond to the IRS and the contact information for our Division should they need information from us to help resolve this issue,” said Scott
Scott notes Delaware employers needing a certification or information from the Division of Unemployment Insurance can call (302) 736-9179.
