P.R. Laws tit. 13, § 33022
(a) Authorization. —
(1) Payment in excess. — When a payment in excess of any taxes imposed by §§ 30041 and 31001 et seq. of this title has been made, the amount of such payment in excess shall be credited, by request of the taxpayer or on the initiative of the Secretary, for which no request to that effect shall be necessary, against any taxes imposed by this Code or the installment thereof which is then enforceable, and any remainder shall be immediately refunded to the taxpayer.
(2) Excessive withholding. —
(A) When the amount of taxes withheld at the source in §§ 30271, 30272, 30273, 30274, 30275, 30278 and 30281 of this title exceeds the taxes imposed by such Subtitle against which taxes thus withheld should be credited in §§ 30221, 30222, 30224, 30225, 30227, 30228 and 30229 of this title, the amount of such excess shall be deemed to be a payment in excess, and shall be refunded to the taxpayer as soon as he/she files the corresponding tax return, notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a)(1), subsection (j) of § 283(h) of Title 3, the Puerto Rico Government Accounting Act, or any other law of the Legislative Assembly.
(B) In the event there are liquid and enforceable debts in connection with any taxes imposed by this Code, the Secretary may credit the taxpayer’s payment in excess against any taxes owed or any enforceable installment thereof, and any remainder shall be immediately refunded to the taxpayer.
(C) When, in the judgment of the Secretary, the budgetary financial condition of the Government and the Puerto Rico Treasury so require, he/she may postpone the refund of the remainder of the payment in excess until July 31 of the fiscal year following the date fixed for filing tax returns. In that case, refunds granted administratively under the provisions of this paragraph shall only accrue interest computed from July 31 until the date the refund check is issued.
(D) Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, in the event that the Child Support Administration orders the withholding of the refund pursuant to its Organic Act, the refund shall be credited, firstly, to the child support debt of the taxpayer.
(3) Credits against estimated taxes. — The Secretary is hereby authorized to promulgate regulations in order to provide that the amount determined by the taxpayer, or by the Secretary, as a payment in excess of taxes for a preceding taxable year be credited against estimated taxes for any subsequent taxable year.
(4) Presumption of payment date. — For purposes of this section, any taxes that have been deducted and withheld at the source during any calendar year in § 30271 of this title shall be with regards to the receiver of the income, deemed to be paid by him/her not before the fifteenth (15th) day of the fourth month following the close of his/her taxable year in connection with which such taxes are allowed as credit in § 30224 of this title. For purposes of this section, any amount paid as estimated taxes for any taxable year shall be deemed to be paid not before the fifteenth (15th) day of the fourth month following the close of such taxable year.
(b) Limitations. —
(1) Prescriptive term. —
(A) Unless a credit or refund claim is filed by the taxpayer within four (4) years from the date on which the tax return or statement was filed by the taxpayer, or within three (3) years from the date on which taxes were paid, no credit or refund shall be granted or made after the expiration of that term which expires the latest.
(B) If the taxpayer has not filed a tax return or statement, then no credit or refund shall be granted or made after three (3) years from the date on which such taxes were paid, unless the taxpayer files a claim for such credit or refund before the expiration of such term.
(2) Amount of credit or refund. — The amount of credit or refund shall not exceed the portion of taxes paid:
(A) During the four (4) years that immediately precede the date the claim is filed, if a tax return or a statement was filed by the taxpayer, and the claim was filed within four years from the date on which such tax return or statement was filed.
(B) During the three (3) years that immediately precede the date the claim is filed, if a claim was filed and
(i) No tax return or statement was filed, or
(ii) if the claim was not filed within four (4) years counting from the date the taxpayer filed the tax return or statement.
(C) During the four (4) years immediately preceding the date the credit or refund was granted, if no claim was filed and the credit or refund is granted within a term of four (4) years counting from the date the taxpayer filed the tax return or statement.
(D) During the three (3) years immediately preceding the date the credit or refund was granted, if no claim was filed; and
(i) No tax return or statement was filed, or
(ii) credit or refund is granted within a term of four (4) years counting from the date the taxpayer filed the tax return or statement.
(3) Exceptions in waivers of prescriptive term. —
(A) If, within the term established in clause (1) for filing a credit or refund claim, both the Secretary and the taxpayer have agreed in writing under the provisions of § 33006(b) of this title to extend beyond the date established in § 33002 of this title the term within which the Secretary may make an assessment, then the term within which a credit or refund claim may be filed, or a credit or refund may be granted if no claim has been filed, shall be the term within which the Secretary may make an assessment pursuant to such agreement or any extension of such term, and six (6) months after, except that the provisions of clause (1) shall be applied to any claim filed, or to credit or refund granted or made, before the execution of such agreement.
(B) The amount of the credit or refund shall not exceed the amount of the portions of the taxes paid;
(i) During the three (3) years immediately preceding the date the agreement is executed, or if such agreement was executed within four (4) years counting from the date the tax return was filed, during the four (4) years immediately preceding the date the agreement was executed;
(ii) after the execution of the agreement and before the expiration of the term within which the Secretary may make an assessment pursuant to such agreement or of any extension of said term, and
(iii) during six (6) months after the expiration of such term, except that the provisions of clause (2) shall apply to any claim filed, or to any credit or refund granted, before the execution of the agreement.
(C) If any portion of the taxes is paid after the expiration of the term within which the Secretary may make an assessment pursuant to such agreement, and if no credit or refund claim has been filed after the date such payment was made and before the six (6) months following the expiration of such term, then a credit or refund may be granted or made if a claim therefor was filed by the taxpayer within six (6) months counting from the date the payment was made, or if no claim was filed within such six (6)-month term following the date of payment, if the credit or refund was granted or made within such term, but the amount of the credit or refund shall not exceed the portion of the amount of taxes paid during the six (6) months immediately preceding the date the claim was filed, or if no claim was filed (and the credit or refund was granted after six (6) months counting from the expiration of the term within which the Secretary may make an assessment), during the six (6) months immediately preceding the date the credit or refund was granted.
(4) Exception for claims regarding tax debts or for certain claims pending judicial action. — The prescriptive term established in clause (1) shall not apply to tax refunds which result from a reliquidation of an inheritance case that stems from a court ruling if such reliquidation is requested within one hundred twenty (120) days counted from the date of the court resolution. In these cases, the refund shall be issued without interest.
(5) Tax return deemed as filed on due date. —
(A) For purposes of this subsection, a tax return filed before the due date prescribed by law to file the same shall be deemed to be filed on said due date.
(B) For purposes of clauses (2) and (3) of this subsection, and for purposes of subsection (d), a payment in advance of any portion of the tax which is made on the date on which such return was filed shall be deemed to be made on the due date prescribed by law for the payment of the tax or, if the taxpayer has opted for paying the tax in installments, on the day prescribed for the payment of the first installment.
(C) For purposes of this clause, the due date prescribed by law to file the return or to pay the tax shall be determined without considering any extensions granted to the taxpayer.
(6) Special prescriptive term when prescriptive term for assessments for the preceding year has not expired. — If the prescriptive term to assess any taxes imposed by §§ 31001 et seq. of this title in connection with any transfer has not expired because the prescriptive term to assess taxes imposed by said part concerning a transfer of a preceding year has not expired, and if the credit or refund claim can be attributed to a readjustment in taxes for such preceding year, in that case, in lieu of the four (4)-year prescriptive term established in clause (1), the term shall be that which expires upon expiration of the prescriptive term for making assessments. As for such claims, the amount of credit or refund may exceed the portion of the amount of taxes paid within the term provided in any applicable paragraphs, up to the amount of payment in excess that could be attributed to such readjustment.
(7) Special prescriptive term for bad debts and securities no longer valuable. —
(A) If the credit or refund claim is related to a payment in excess due to:
(i) The fact that the taxpayer may deduct a debt in § 30126(a)(1), § 30126(a)(4) or § 30507(d), as a debt that became a bad debt, or in 30126(a)(2) of this title of a loss of securities that are no longer valuable, or
(ii) the effect that the ability to deduct a debt or a loss described in paragraph (A) has on the application of a carryover to the taxpayer, in lieu of the four (4)-year prescriptive term established under clause (1), the term shall be seven (7) years counting from the date prescribed by law to file a tax return for the year in connection with which the claim was made.
(B) As for claims described in this clause, the amount of credit or refund may exceed the portion of the amount of taxes paid within the term established under clauses (2) or (3), whichever may apply, up to the limit of the amount of payment in excess that can be attributed to the ability to deduct items described in this clause.
History —Jan. 31, 2011, No. 1, § 6021.02, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011.