Norwalk tax payments due Tuesday, Aug. 1

NORWALK, Conn. – This is a press release, presented in the format in which it was sent:

General Information:  Norwalk taxpayers have until the close of business on Tuesday, August 1, 2017, to pay their property tax bills for real estate, motor vehicle, and business personal property taxes, and sewer use charges, without interest penalty.  These bills were due July 1, 2017, and reflect the first installment of charges due on the grand list of October 1, 2016.   Bills were mailed to Norwalk taxpayers the week of June 20.

Office hours at the tax collector’s office at City Hall are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.   The office does not close for lunch.   Taxpayers are encouraged to pay by mail.   Payments postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service on or before August 1, 2017, are timely, regardless of when they are received by the tax collector’s office.

Taxpayers may also pay taxes at one of 11 Norwalk bank branch locations of the following banks:  Fairfield County Bank; Patriot National Bank; Webster Bank; TD Bank; and Norwalk Bank and Trust.  There is no charge for the service, and the taxpayer does not need to be a customer of the bank to walk in and pay there, but he or she must bring a current tax bill.  The banks accept payments through August 1 only.

Information about how to pay your taxes is available on the tax collector’s home page on the City website at:   http://www.norwalkct.org/225/Tax-Collector .  For information about how to pay on line or over the telephone click the link  http://www.norwalkct.org/245/Credit-Card-and-e-Check-Payments .

Taxpayers  may also call toll free 866 974 8090, and pay over the telephone using their card.  Credit, debit, and ATM cards may also be used to pay in person at City Hall.  ACH payments (‘E Check’) payments may be made on line.  The charge for an E Check is $1.50.

Electronic Bill Pay:  Warning about  electronic bill payment / telephone bill pay services:  These services may not mail your payment when you expect them to!  You assume the risk of your payment arriving late if you choose to use these services.  These payments come to us without a postmark, and because of this, payments must be RECEIVED  BY US  before the last day to pay (on or before August 1) in order to be considered timely.  Normally the postmark controls, but if there is no postmark, timeliness depends solely upon our receipt of the payment.   Read the instructions and warnings provided by your own bank before using any ‘pay by phone’ or electronic bill payment service.  Many service providers advise NOT to use the service for tax payments for the reasons given.  If you use electronic banking services, you are responsible for entering your payment information accurately and completely.  Your payment may not being processed if you fail to provide accurate account numbers and other necessary information.  If your payment cannot be processed due to your error or omission, you will be charged a $20 return transaction fee, as if you had a check returned unpaid.

Motor Vehicle Clearance Information:   The Department of Motor Vehicles encourages taxpayers to go online to process transactions in order to avoid waiting in line at the DMV branches.  You can now verify your tax status and other compliance issues with DMV on line, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Access the DMV on line here:  www.ct.gov/dmv/online.   If you pay today by credit card through the Point and Pay service portal, either by phone or online, YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE IMMEDIATE CLEARANCE FOR DMV.

If you pay through Point and Pay today, the City will update your account with your payment information on the following business day. You will then be cleared with DMV the morning of the next business day. This means you will not be cleared to register with DMV until TWO BUSINESS DAYS AFTER you make payment through the Point and Pay service.

Payments made in person today at the tax collector’s office window are cleared with DMV overnight.  You will be cleared to register with DMV on the following business day.   If a tax clearance for DMV is needed, please DO NOT USE the E-Check option for method of payment. If you choose to use this method the Tax Collector’s Office will not clear you for registration for 30 days, unless a copy of cancelled check or “mini-statement” from your bank is provided to the Tax Collector’s office, showing that the check has cleared your account.

The Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles discontinued the use of the ‘paper’ vehicle clearance slip, and the tax collector’s release stamp on vehicle registrations.

The best way to avoid problems with compliance at the DMV is to pay your motor vehicle taxes on time, before they are late.

Late Payments:  Interest on late payments will be charged at the rate of 3% beginning on August 2.  This represents 1.5 % per month for two months, July and August.  This rate will remain the same throughout the month of August.  Taxpayers who are unsure about what they may owe may look up their taxes on line here: http://my.norwalkct.org/eTaxbill/

Failure to have received a tax bill does NOT exempt the taxpayer from interest charges.  Interest is charged on all late payments, with absolutely no exception, in accordance with state law.

This press release was posted as a public service. A press release is a written announcement submitted to news organizations to publicize an event or activity, a milestone or a point of view. NancyOnNorwalk has not researched the assertions made and takes no responsibility for the content.