11 July 2013
Business owners who
are behind on paying their corporate sales taxes may find themselves in a big
mess. Generally, these amounts are considered to be held in trust for the
Commonwealth. Should corporations fail
to pay these sales taxes, the Commonwealth is able to collect the amount due
from the officers of the company who are responsible for their collection and
payment. Mass. Gen. Laws c. 64H §
16. These corporate officers are also personally
obligated for the interest and penalties that stem from overdue corporate sales
taxes as well. Berenson v.
Commissioner of Revenue, 413 Mass. 831, 832 (1992). This applies even if the corporation has gone
out of business. Id. This means that if the sales taxes are not
paid by the corporation when due, it can haunt the corporate officer
responsible for their payment for years into the future.
If such a situation arises, there could be
significant conflict between those that ran the corporation, as people may have
different opinions about whether the responsibility for the taxes coincide with
the “fault” for not paying them. In the
event that you find yourself in such a situation or need advice on what to do
with old corporate sales tax debt, feel free to give this office a call.
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