Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title IX Chapter 62C
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 62C, § 36 (2026)

Overpayment of tax, interest, or penalty; refund or credit; persons against whom a default or arrest warrant has been issued

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 36. If, on the verification of a return or otherwise, the commissioner determines that an overpayment of the full amount of any tax, and interest and penalties thereon, due with respect to such return has been made by the taxpayer, the amount of such overpayment may, in his discretion, be deducted from any unpaid amounts of any other taxes due from the taxpayer. The balance of such overpayment shall be refunded to the taxpayer if it exceeds ten dollars; if such balance is ten dollars or less, it may be refunded in the discretion of the commissioner or upon the application of the taxpayer. Interest upon such refund shall be paid in accordance with section forty.

The commissioner may, at the request of any taxpayer entitled to a refund of taxes paid, make such refund to a bank account designated by the taxpayer to receive such refund.

A request for a refund or credit of an overpayment of any tax where a required return has not been timely filed, shall be made by filing the overdue return within 3 years from the due date of the return, taking into account any extension of time for filing the return, or within 2 years of the date that the tax was paid, whichever is later. A request for a refund or credit of an overpayment of any tax where no return is required shall be made by the taxpayer within 2 years from the time the tax was paid. A request for a refund or credit of an overpayment of tax where the required return was timely filed shall be made within the period permitted for abatement for that return under section 37. Any request for a refund or credit filed beyond these deadlines shall be denied by the commissioner. Where a refund or credit results from an abatement under section 37, the amount of such refund or credit shall be limited to the amount paid, or deemed paid pursuant to section 79, within 3 years of the date that the application for abatement is filed, taking into account any extension of time for filing the return. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence and any contrary provision of section 27, where the commissioner and the taxpayer have agreed to extend the period for assessment of a tax pursuant to section 27, the amount of any refund or credit, whether determined by the commissioner to be an overpayment pursuant to section 27 or claimed by the taxpayer pursuant to a timely filed application for abatement, shall not exceed the amount of the tax paid after the execution of the agreement and before the expiration of the agreed extension period or periods plus the amount of the tax paid which would otherwise be eligible for refund under this section if an application for abatement had been filed on the date the agreement was first executed. This section shall not limit refunds or credits otherwise allowed pursuant to section 30 or 30A.

No person against whom a default or arrest warrant issued by any court of the commonwealth is outstanding may be issued a state tax refund. In lieu of the payment, the taxpayer shall receive notice informing the taxpayer that the refund is being withheld because there is a default or arrest warrant outstanding for such individual and that the refund will be withheld until the individual furnishes sufficient proof that the default or arrest warrant has been recalled or that no such warrant exists. Such refund shall be issued upon presentation of sufficient proof to the commissioner that said warrant has been recalled or that there is no such warrant outstanding for the individual. The commissioner of revenue shall promulgate regulations to implement this section, which shall include the opportunity for a hearing to challenge the existence of the outstanding warrant. If a hearing is requested, the law enforcement agency responsible for the warrant shall be notified of the time, place, date of hearing and the subject of the warrant. An affidavit from the law enforcement agency responsible for the warrant or from the colonel of the state police may be introduced as prima facie evidence of the existence of a warrant without the need for members of that law enforcement agency to attend any hearings held under this section.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1986–2024 · leading case: Fleet Nat'l Bank v. Comm'r of Revenue, 448 Mass. 441 (Mass. 2007).
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Fleet Nat'l Bank v. Comm'r of Revenue, 448 Mass. 441 (Mass. 2007). “62C, § 40, stated: “(a) If any refund of any tax, interest or penalties is made pursuant to [G. L. c. 62C, § 36], the state treasurer shall repay to the taxpayer the amount of such refund with interest thereon at the rate established under [G.”
RHI Holdings, Inc. v. Comm'r of Revenue, 748 N.E.2d 964 (Mass. App. Ct. 2001). · cites it 2× “Preliminary Matters The taxpayer’s fail-back assertion that the board should have compelled the commissioner to use his “inherent power” to “abate” the taxpayer’s “illegally assessed” tax pursuant to G. L. c. 62C, § 36, is without merit. The board had no jurisdiction to compel…”
McGonagle v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., 915 N.E.2d 1083 (Mass. App. Ct. 2009). “A person seeking refund of an overpayment (such as the plaintiffs) may apply for an abatement within two years of the payment of the tax, G. L. c. 62C, § 36, third par.; G. L. c. 62C, § 37, first par.”
Comm'r of Revenue v. A.W. Chesterton Co., 548 N.E.2d 883 (Mass. 1990). · cites it 2× “Nonetheless, the board concluded that the payment of the assessed tax was an “overpayment” within the meaning of G. L. c. 62C, § 36, which, under that section, the taxpayer was entitled to have refunded without an abatement application and regardless of the passage of time.”
TaxEquity All. for Massachusetts, Inc. v. Comm'r of Revenue, 516 N.E.2d 152 (Mass. 1987). “62F makes no substantive difference. The return of funds to which *317 a taxpayer is entitled does not involve the appropriation of funds although the amounts refunded are taken from the State treasury.”
McGonagle v. Home Depot U.S.A, Inc., 22 Mass. L. Rptr. 708 (Mass. Super. Ct. 2007). “1; refunds by the Commissioner for payment of taxes received in error, G.L.c. 62C, §36; actions in contract by vendors to recover unpaid taxes, G.”
Raytheon Co. v. Comm'r of Revenue (Mass. App. Ct. 2019). · cites it 3× “" 11 believes it has overreported the amount of tax due on its tax return, it may seek a refund of that overpayment either by filing an application for abatement of the overpayment, pursuant to G. L. c. 62C, § 36, or by filing an amended tax return that reduces the tax reported…”
State Street Boston Corp. v. Comm'r of Revenue, 568 N.E.2d 1157 (Mass. App. Ct. 1991). “466 (1990), disposes of the argument, advanced by State Street, that a taxpayer is entitled to a refund of an overpayment of taxes under G. L. c. 62C, § 36, irrespective of whether a timely request for an abatement had been filed.”
Brian R. Hogan v. Comm'r of Revenue. (Mass. App. Ct. 2024). “See G. L. c. 62C, § 36. Where the board found that there had been no overpayment, it lacked jurisdiction and properly dismissed the plaintiff's appeal.”
Friendly Ice Cream Corp. v. Comm'r of Revenue, 493 N.E.2d 491 (Mass. 1986). · cites it 2× “64H, §§ 3, 4; and (2) the Department of Revenue (department), when conducting an audit of a taxpayer, is required under G. L. c. 62C, § 36 (1984 ed.), to verify both a taxpayer’s underpayment and an overpayment of tax, and that the department’s practice of refusing to release an…”
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