Did the Department of Insurance Get My Statements/Payment?
Remember, although the Association mails the tax statements out to you, you don't mail them back to us -- you mail them to the Illinois Department of Insurance at the address on the statement. So how do I know if the DOI got the statements and/or payments I sent in?
- First, the easiest way to tell is to use the tracking information you have (you did follow our advice and use a service that provides proof of mailing and proof of delivery, right?). While you are checking the tracking information, it's a good idea to print it out to paper or to a PDF and save it with your tax information. Services that provide tracking confirmations online often only make the information available for a few months. However, in our experience, disputes about when and whether tax statements and payments were sent or received don't occur until many months, or sometimes years, after the due date.
- Second, if you owed taxes, you can tell if the statement and check were received by checking with your bank to see if the check has cleared your account.
- If you have evidence that your statements were mailed to the DOI before the due date, but the DOI or SLAI has contacted you indicating the statements were not received by the DOI, send an explanation, a copy of your proof-of-mailing, and signed copies of the tax statements in question to Lindsey Merriman at the email shown below.
If you failed to use a service that provides tracking, and you cannot confirm with your bank that your tax payment check cleared, you can contact Lindsey Merriman at the DOI by email (). Around tax time, they are deluged with such requests and other tax problems so please (please!) contact them only if you are unable to confirm receipt through one of the other methods!
Other Important Reminders
DO NOT ALTER THE NUMBERS ON THE TAX STATEMENT
By law, taxes are due, not based on policy effective dates, but rather based on filings with the Surplus Line Association of Illinois. The numbers on your tax form(s) reflect those filings. DO NOT CHANGE THESE NUMBERS without first contacting the Association. Your check must match the amount preprinted on this form and should be made payable to "Illinois Department of Insurance."
For instructions regarding how to see the detail that makes up the numbers on your tax statement, click here
MAIL STATEMENT AND CHECK TOGETHER
If you owe tax, always include your check
in the same envelope with your tax statement. However, if you must send them separately due to pandemic restrictions, the Department of Insurance has asked that you put your NPN number on the check so they can identify the tax payment.
ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES
The Department of Insurance has indicated that electronic signatures on tax statements are acceptable.
YOUR TAX STATEMENTS MUST BE FILED ...
... EVEN IF NO TAX IS DUE.
Failure to file by the due date (Feb 1 or Aug 1 for surplus line, Feb 1 for fire marshal) will result in a
penalty of at least $400!!
KEEP ONE COPY FOR YOUR FILE
...
... and send the other copy with your payment to the DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE at the address shown on the form. DO NOT mail these forms to the Association!!
PROOF OF MAILING/DELIVERY
There is nothing in the surplus line statute that requires you to obtain proof of mailing or proof of delivery for your tax forms. However, since failure to file by the due date could subject a licensee to substantial fines and penalties, it is prudent and advisable to choose a delivery system that can provide proof of mailing and proof of delivery.
When proof of mailing and delivery is accessible online via a tracking number (as is typically the case with UPS, FedEx and USPS), please note that this proof is often no longer available after 3 months. It is advisable to access the proof of mailing and delivery online a couple of weeks after mailing, and print it out so you can keep it in your files together with your copy of the tax statement. Disputes about receipt of a tax statement or payment often do not even arise until after five our six months from the due date.
COMPLYING WITH DUE DATE REQUIREMENTS
Section 412 of the Illinois Insurance Code states, "A tax return or report shall be deemed received as of the date mailed as evidenced by a postmark, proof of mailing on a recognized United States Postal Service form or a form acceptable to the United States Postal Service or other commercial mail delivery service, or other evidence acceptable to the Director."
The Department of Insurance has indicated in the past that the date imprinted from a postage meter is not an acceptable proof of mailing.
If you did not receive, or cannot find, your tax statements, try reprinting them from the EFS. If you don't have a login for the EFS or are having problems printing the statements, send an email to
and we'll be happy to send/email duplicates.
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