Overview
In this past fiscal year, Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22), Massachusetts tax revenue collections exceeded the annual tax revenue cap set by Chapter 62F of the Massachusetts General Laws by $2.941 billion. In accordance with the statute, this excess revenue is being returned to taxpayers.
In general, eligible taxpayers will receive a credit in the form of a refund of 14.0312% of their Massachusetts personal income tax liability for Tax Year 2021. This percentage was finalized by the Department of Revenue after the 2021 individual tax return filing extension deadline of October 17, 2022. Please note that credits may be reduced due to refund intercepts, including for unpaid tax liability, unpaid child support, and certain other debts.
Distribution of refunds will begin on November 1, 2022 – eligible taxpayers will receive their refund automatically through direct deposit or as a check sent through the mail. If you have already filed your 2021 tax return and you had a tax liability, no action is needed, and you should receive your refund by mid-December of 2022. If you have not yet filed your 2021 return, you are still eligible if you file by September 15, 2023 and, if eligible for a refund, you should receive it approximately one month after you file.
You can use the estimator below to estimate your refund based on your Tax Year 2021 income tax liability.
The Department of Revenue does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information. Note that there is no system through which you can check the status of your 62F refund. Please call the 62F Refund Call Center at 877-677-9727 with questions regarding your refund.
Refund Estimator
Frequently Asked Questions
About Chapter 62F
Q. What is Chapter 62F?
Chapter 62F is a Massachusetts General Law that requires the Department of Revenue to issue a credit to taxpayers if total tax revenues in a given fiscal year exceed an annual cap tied to wage and salary growth in the Commonwealth.
See the full law here: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIX/Chapter62F
Enacted by voters in 1986 via a ballot question, the Chapter 62F process has been triggered once before, in 1987.
Q. Who determines whether Chapter 62F is triggered?
The law requires that the Department of Revenue submit a report to the State Auditor on the net state tax revenues and the allowable state tax revenues for each fiscal year by September 1st.
The State Auditor then makes the determination of whether net state tax revenue exceeds allowable state tax revenue – and, if so, by what amount – on or before the third Tuesday of September (September 20th in 2022).
Q. Why is Chapter 62F being triggered this year?
In FY22, total state tax revenue collected was $41,812,654,358, which exceeded the allowable revenue threshold for FY22 as defined by Chapter 62F of $38,871,154,627 by a total of $2,941,499,731.
This means that the amount that must be returned to taxpayers under the statute is $2,941,499,731.
Eligibility
Q. Who is eligible to receive a refund?
Anyone who paid personal income taxes in Massachusetts for the 2021 tax year and filed a 2021 state tax return on or before September 15, 2023 is eligible to receive a refund.
Please note that:
- Both resident and non-resident filers are eligible.
- Non-residents on whose behalf a partnership or S corporation files on a composite basis are eligible.
- Fiduciary filers (trusts and estates) are eligible.
Note: pass-through entities that elected to pay the excise under chapter 63D are not eligible to receive a refund.
Q. Do I need to take any action to receive a refund?
If you have already filed your 2021 tax return and you had a tax liability, no action is needed, and you should receive your refund by mid-December of 2022. If you have not yet filed your 2021 return, you are still eligible if you file by September 15, 2023 and, if eligible for a refund, you should receive it approximately one month after you file.
Q. How much am I eligible to receive?
Chapter 62F requires distribution of the credits in proportion to personal income tax liability in Massachusetts incurred by taxpayers in the immediately preceding taxable year – Tax Year 2021.
That means that in general, taxpayers will receive a refund that is 14.0312% of their personal income tax liability in Massachusetts for Tax Year 2021. This percentage was finalized by the Department of Revenue after the 2021 individual tax return filing extension deadline of October 17, 2022. Please also note that credits are subject to offsets, including for unpaid tax liability, unpaid child support, and certain other debts.
The estimator at the top of this page can help you calculate an estimate of your refund amount.
Q. How do I find out what my personal income tax liability was in 2021?
Your “income tax liability” is the amount of taxes that were due to Massachusetts for the 2021 tax year, after application of any credit (including the pass-through entity credit under chapter 63D) and before estimated taxes and withholding.
To find out what your income tax liability was for Tax Year 2021:
- For residents: your income tax liability is the amount on line 32 of Form 1 for Tax Year 2021 minus the sum of lines 43 through 47 on Form 1 for Tax Year 2021.
- For non-residents or part-year residents: your income tax liability is the amount on line 36 of Form 1-NR/PY for Tax Year 2021 minus the sum of lines 47 through 51 of Form 1-NR/PY for Tax Year 2021
Q. What if I need a copy of my 2021 Massachusetts tax return for the purposes of using the estimator at the top of this page?
The following Department of Revenue website explains how to request a copy of your previously filed 2021 Massachusetts tax return:
Q. Will I still get a refund if I received a 2021 income tax refund? Will the 2021 income tax refund reduce the refund I am getting now?
Previously-issued Tax Year 2021 income tax refunds will not reduce or otherwise impact your 62F refund, and your receipt of a 62F refund has no bearing on whether you will be due an income tax refund for Tax Year 2022. 62F refunds will only be reduced due to intercepts, including for unpaid tax liability, unpaid child support, and certain other debts.
Q. My family member recently died. How does 62F work for us?
If an individual income tax return was filed by or for your family member for 2021, and the family member otherwise qualified for a 62F refund, the refund will be issued to the individual taxpayer even if now deceased. Conversely, if a return was filed for a trust, then the refund would be issued to the trust. If the trust has since closed, DOR would require the following documents in order to re-issue a new check to the executor of the estate:
- Original uncashed check
- Legal instrument used to close the trust
- Death certificate
Receiving Your Refund
Q. When should I expect my refund?
If you had a 2021 tax liability and filed a 2021 tax return on or before October 17, 2022, then you should expect to receive your refund by mid-December of 2022. If you had a 2021 tax liability and file(d) a 2021 tax return after October 17, 2022 (but on or before September 15, 2023) then you should expect to receive your refund approximately one month after you file, if eligible.
The Department of Revenue does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information. Note that there is no system through which you can check the status of your 62F refund. Please call the 62F Refund Call Center at 877-677-9727 with questions regarding your refund.
Q. What if I filed jointly in Tax Year 2021?
Your refund will be based on your 2021 filing status.
For example, there will be a single refund for taxpayers who filed jointly in 2021, even if not filing jointly in 2022.
Q. How will I receive my refund?
If you are eligible for a refund, you will receive it automatically as a check sent through the mail or through direct deposit.
62F refunds issued by direct deposit will be labeled “MASTTAXRFD”. Refunds mailed as a check will include several sentences on the check explaining Chapter 62F and why the recipient is receiving a refund.
Q. How will I receive my refund if a partnership or S corporation filed on a composite basis on my behalf?
As with any other refund due on a composite filing, the refund will be issued to the partnership or S corporation. Whether and how you receive a share of the refund will depend upon the terms of the entity’s operating agreement.
Q. Will the refunds be treated as taxable income?
The refunds are not taxable as income at the state level.
According to IRS guidance issued February 10, 2023, 62F refunds are excluded from income for federal purposes if “the recipient claimed the standard deduction or itemized their deductions but did not receive a tax benefit (for example, because the $10,000 tax deduction limit applied).” IRS News Release 2023-23. Refund recipients who itemized on their federal returns for Tax Year 2021 will receive a Form 1099-G from the Department of Revenue by January 31 of the year following the year in which the refund was received.
Q. Can I change my bank account information to receive a refund to a different bank account?
No. Open verified direct deposit bank account information as reported on your Tax Year 2021 filed income tax return will be used to disperse 62F refunds. No changes to bank account information can be submitted. If your bank account reported on your 2021 filed income tax return is closed, you will receive your 62F refund by check.
Q. What if my address has changed since I filed my 2021 tax return?
Log into MassTaxConnect and update your address to be current. https://mtc.dor.state.ma.us/mtc/_/
Additional Information
A call center is available to answer 62F refund questions at 877-677-9727, Monday through Friday from 9am - 4pm. Please note that the exact refund amount for each eligible taxpayer will be determined as refunds are processed, so the call center will not be able to provide your refund amount until after it has been issued.
The estimator at the top of this page can help you calculate a preliminary estimate of your refund amount.
This website will be updated as additional information becomes available.