RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – The state Department of Revenue is now accepting tax returns following a delay it says was due to the new North Carolina budget.
The revenue department said anyone who has already filed their state returns electronically will receive an acknowledgment.
State workers have been pushing hard for the last three months to get internal software updated as well as approving third-party software used by accountants that reflect all the tax changes that have taken place since the new North Carolina budget was signed.
The massive state budget is the reason for the holdup. It wasn’t signed till late November, and it contained many changes to the state’s tax laws as the conservative think tank the John Locke Foundation outlined.
Among the changes:
- A personal income tax decrease from 5.25 percent of your income to 4.99 percent
- An increase in the standard deduction based on your income
- An increase to child tax credit deduction by $500 per child
- No more retirement benefit taxes for military personnel
Because of those changes and others, the state department of revenue tells CBS 17 they needed to update all their software systems and then check that they work correctly.
They also must approve software used by third parties like Turbo Tax, Cash App Taxes, Tax Slayer and others to make sure that software complies with our new state tax laws.
Tax returns are due by April 15.
DoR said that due to the Emancipation Day holiday, returns filed on or before April 18 will be considered filed on time and will not be subject to penalties or interest.
Refunds will start to go out in April.
