TORONTO, ON – The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) says it has reached an agreement for its members with officials in one U.S. state so trucks will no longer be seized for failure to pay a certain tax under a temporary amnesty program.

The agreement with the New Jersey Division of Taxation concerns both U.S. and Canadian plated trucks for failure to pay the state Corporate Business Tax (CBT).

The CBT is applied to all trucking companies making any pickups or delivery in the state, regardless if they have a terminal in the U.S. or not.

A voluntary compliance initiative is taking place now through Dec. 31, offering CTA members the opportunity to voluntarily come forward to register their business and file the appropriate taxes, according to CTA.

“For CTA members, the benefit of taking part in this program is that the carrier will be eligible for the favorable terms that are offered under the Voluntary Disclosure Program. Only CTA members will be processed under this specific agreement,” the group says on its website.

Under the agreement with the CTA, the State of New Jersey will only require payment of the CBT for the current tax year (2015) plus the prior three years (2012-2014). A statutory 5% penalty and interest charge will also apply.

New Jersey will not require carriers who qualify for the minimum tax payment, US$500, to file a CBT return for previous tax years of 2012-2015, only for 2016 and future years. 

In order to minimize the administrative cost of compliance, CTA says New Jersey has agreed to accept a statement on company letterhead certifying that the company has no property or employees in New Jersey, has little relative miles in the state and that the company is a minimum tax filer. New Jersey will then fill out the tax forms for each company to denote that such a fleet is a minimum filer for tax years 2012-2015. 

Carriers will have to fill out required CBT forms for the 2016 tax year and future years.

According to CTA, New Jersey retains the right to pursue any company participating in this program that is in fact liable for greater-than-minimum tax.

The agreement is available to carriers who have not been previously contacted by New Jersey, however, the state has indicated to CTA that it will consider potential remedies for Canadian carriers previously assessed on a case-by-case basis.

To obtain the instructions to participate in this CTA-NJ voluntary disclosure program, CTA says carrier members should contact their provincial trucking association.