Oregon Revised Statutes

Or. Rev. Stat. § 657.480 (2026)

Effect of transfer of trade or business; partial transfer; penalties; rules

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section ORSoregonlegislature.gov JustiaChapter on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

657.480 Effect of transfer of trade or business; partial transfer; penalties; rules. (1) If an employer transfers its trade or business or a portion of its trade or business to another employer, the portion of unemployment experience attributable to the transferred trade or business shall be transferred to the acquiring employer.

(2)(a) If a person is not an employer when the person acquires a trade or business or a portion of a trade or business of an employer, the unemployment experience of the acquired trade or business shall be transferred to the person unless the Director of the Employment Department finds that the person acquired the trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate.

(b) The person described in paragraph (a) of this subsection is not entitled to a tax rate of less than the tax rate assigned under ORS 657.435 unless and until the person, based upon the person’s unemployment experience and the unemployment experience of the trade or business transferred, has throughout the 12 consecutive months preceding the computation date had its account chargeable with benefits.

(c) If the director finds that a person acquired a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate, the director shall deny a transfer of unemployment experience. In determining whether a person acquired a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate, the director shall use objective factors that may include:

(A) The cost of acquiring the trade or business;

(B) Whether the person continued the business activities of the transferred trade or business;

(D) Whether a substantial number of new employees were hired for the performance of duties unrelated to the business activities of the trade or business that were conducted before the transfer.

(3)(a) A person may not engage in activity to transfer or acquire, or to attempt to transfer or acquire, a trade or business or any portion of a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate. If a person knowingly engages in activity to transfer or acquire, or to attempt to transfer or acquire, a trade or business or any portion of a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate, the director shall assign the person the highest tax rate designated under this chapter for the rate year during which the activity occurred and for the next three rate years. However, if the person is already subject to the highest tax rate for a year, or if the amount of increase in the person’s tax rate would be less than two percentage points for the year, the director shall impose an additional penalty tax rate of two percentage points added to the calculated tax rate.

(b) A person may not advise another person to engage in activity to transfer or acquire, or to attempt to transfer or acquire, a trade or business or any portion of a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate. In addition to any other penalty provided by law, the director may assess a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 against a person that knowingly advises another person to engage in activity to transfer or acquire, or to attempt to transfer or acquire, a trade or business or any portion of a trade or business solely or primarily for the purpose of obtaining a lower tax rate. The director shall deposit all sums collected as civil penalties under this paragraph into the Employment Department Special Administrative Fund. An assessment under this paragraph is final unless within 20 days after the mailing of the notice of assessment the person files an application for a hearing under ORS 657.683.

(c) As used in this subsection, “knowingly” means having actual knowledge of or acting with deliberate ignorance or reckless disregard for the law.

(4) The director shall adopt necessary rules and procedures regarding the transfer of unemployment experience for purposes of establishing employer tax rates under this chapter to ensure that higher tax rates are not avoided through the transfer or acquisition of a trade or business or a portion of a trade or business. In adopting rules under this section, the director shall consider and strive to meet the minimum requirements in any guidance or regulations issued by the United States Department of Labor. [Amended by 1977 c.538 §6; 1999 c.513 §1; 2005 c.35 §2]

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 9 cases, 1969–2010 · leading case: Necanicum Inv. Co. v. Emp. Dep't, 190 P.3d 368 (Or. 2008).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Necanicum Inv. Co. v. Emp. Dep't, 190 P.3d 368 (Or. 2008). “683(4) provides, in part: “At any hearing held as provided in ORS 657.480,657.679,657.681 or 657.682, the determination or assessment of the director or authorized representative shall be prima facie correct and the burden shall be upon the protesting employing unit to prove…”

RSMJ, Inc. v. Emp. Div., 596 P.2d 909 (Or. 1979). · cites it 6× “This transfer of an existing experience rating is provided as follows in ORS 657.480: If the organization, trade or business, including the entire employing enterprise and all its incidents for all purposes of this chapter, of any employer is by purchase or otherwise transferred…”

RSMJ, Inc. v. Emp. Div., 580 P.2d 1055 (Or. Ct. App. 1978). · cites it 4× “The order appealed from determined that petitioner was a "successor-in-interest” to an employing enterprise under ORS 657.480 and is required to assume the unfavorable experience rating of that employer for the purposes of calculating unemployment compensation taxes.”

West Bearing & Parts, Inc. v. Peet, 456 P.2d 993 (Or. 1969). · cites it 4× “020, the statute defining an employing unit and of ORS 657.480 and which is commonly called the successor-in-interest statute.”

Joseph, Babener & Carpenter v. Emp. Div., 737 P.2d 628 (Or. Ct. App. 1987). · cites it 8× “ORS 657.480 provides, in pertinent part: “If the organization, trade or business, including the entire employing enterprise and all its incidents for all purposes of this chapter, of any employer is by purchase or otherwise transferred to an employing unit, whether or not such…”

All PEO, Inc. v. Emp. Dep't, 111 P.3d 798 (Or. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 5× “” ORS 657.480(1). In this case, there is no debate that petitioner is an “employer” subject to the requirement to pay the unemployment payroll tax.”

Sports Clubs, LLC v. Emp. Dep't, 234 P.3d 136 (Or. Ct. App. 2010). “683(4) provides, in relevant part: “At any hearing held as provided in ORS 657.480, 657.679, 657.681 or 657.682, the determination or assessment of the director or authorized representative [of the department] shall be prima facie correct and the burden shall be upon the…”

Jefferson Street Holding Co. v. Emp. Div., 600 P.2d 928 (Or. Ct. App. 1979). · cites it 2× “On September 27, 1977, the Employment Division served the employer with a notice of determination that the employer was subject to the Employment Division Law, ORS Chapter 657, as of May 2, 1977, that it had been determined to be the successor-in-interest to the Broadway Inn…”

Emp. Div. v. Brown, 646 P.2d 73 (Or. Ct. App. 1982). · cites it 2× “The referee concluded that any Charleston Boat liability for deficiencies in payroll taxes passed to the corporation as a successor employer, ORS 657.480, and that Charleston Boat was relieved of all liability for such deficiencies.”

— Or. Rev. Stat. § 657.480(1) — 1 case

All PEO, Inc. v. Emp. Dep't, 111 P.3d 798 (Or. Ct. App. 2005). “” ORS 657.480(1). In this case, there is no debate that petitioner is an “employer” subject to the requirement to pay the unemployment payroll tax.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.