We know that you have a million things on your minds right now, so we want to help you and your business with this process. February will be here before you know it - so we want to help you prepare now.
We have been in communication with the folks in the Tax Department at the Municipality of Anchorage and are meeting with them again today to get clarification on some of the details. In the meantime, we wanted to share with you some of the resources from their website. You can read more on MOA's website or download their informative presentation from this link.
After our meeting, we will be sharing more details on collecting, reporting, and auditing requirements. We will also be providing specific instructions for our customers that are affected by this new tax.
Here are some of the highlights from their presentation:
Important Dates:
• December 1, 2020: Online registration opens
• February 1, 2021: Begin collecting alcohol tax
• March 15, 2021: Last day to register for certificate without incurring late registration penalty of $250
• March 31, 2021: Last day for filing first monthly tax return reporting taxable sales
and tax due; Last day for remitting tax due for the reporting month of February
Tax Exemptions(AMC 12.65.040):
•Wholesale and manufacturer sales of alcoholic beverages
•Corkage fees
•Component parts (kegs, growlers)
•Sales of alcohol on common carriers within the city
•Sales of alcohol by United States
•Sales of alcohol to an officer or employee of a foreign government exempt from taxation
Application Submittal:
• Retailers must apply for a Certificate of Registration for each location
• We strongly encourage online registration using Formstack on our website: www.muni.org/alcoholtax
• Available December 1, 2020
• You can attach and send PDFs with your application
• Online application promotes complete and accurate applications and reduces
processing time.
The following documents must be submitted with the application:
• SOA Business License
• AMCO alcohol retail license(s) or permit(s)
• No Charge for issuing Certificate of Registration
• Allow 5 business days for processing complete applications
File Tax Return:
• Go to our website: www.muni.org/alcoholtax for detailed instructions
on how to setup your tax account and file tax return online
through a new process ‐ eGovern
• After your application is approved Treasury will send an email with your 11
digit account ID number and a WEB PIN to register for online tax return
filing and payment.
• WEB PIN expires after 7 days
• File tax return online to avoid $50 paper filing fee
Tax Return Filing Procedures:
• File online https://muni.org/strtaxpayments after you have set up
your eGovern tax account
• Pay online with electronic check
• Our third‐party payment processor charges a user fee ranging from
$1.75 to $6.00, depending on the amount of the tax remittance
• Fee schedule will be posted on website
On or before the last day of each calendar month, every retailer must
submit a tax return to the department
• Example: Sales occurred in February 2021 – Tax Return and payment
due by March 31, 2021
• Example: Sales occurred in March 2021 – Tax Return and payment
due by April 30, 2021
• Even if no sales occurred during the month you are required to file a
zero‐dollar tax return
Penalties and Interest:
(AMC 12.65.270 & AMC 12.65.260)
• There is a separate penalty for late filing and a separate penalty
for late payment
• 10% Penalty: Failure to file OR pay within 7 days following the due date
• 25% Penalty: Failure to file OR pay within 16 days following the due date
• Interest is assessed at a rate of 12% and is calculated daily from the
due date
Retailers must:
• Implement policies and practices to ensure you meet code requirements
• Assess, collect, safeguard and timely remit taxes
• Segregate tax funds from retailer funds
• Maintain complete and accurate records
Recordkeeping Requirements:
(AMC 12.65.210)
Complete and accurate records include:
• Books of accounts, journals, ledgers, and other compilations of
source documents
• Detailed inventory records including periodic inventory counts
• Alcoholic beverage acquisition and sales data
• More requirements can be found in AMC 12.65.210
Sales transactions should record the following:
• Date of sale
• Type of alcoholic beverage sold
• Quantity of alcoholic beverages sold
• Sales price
• Retail sales tax charged
• Amount and method of payment
• Provide a similar receipt to each consumer at time of sale
Prohibited Acts:
(AMC 12.65.250)
Prohibited acts include, but are not limited to the following:
• Engaging in business as a retailer without a proper and current
registration
• Failing or refusing to pay the tax imposed by the code
• Advertising to the public that the tax or any part of it will be:
• refunded
• assumed or absorbed by the retailer
Denying the Chief Fiscal Officer (CFO) access to the retailer’s
records and inventory
• Failing to hold funds in trust for the Municipality
• Designate these funds as a liability – something you owe
• These funds are paid by the consumer
• Failing to timely remit collected funds to the Municipality
• Preparing false returns
• A more complete list can be found at AMC 12.65.250
Special Event Organizers
• Special Event organizers must apply for a Temporary Special‐Use
Certificate for each event where expected sales of alcohol will exceed
$5,000.00
• Required to pay tax deposit where expected sales exceed $5,000.
• Deposit will be 5% of expected sales
• The following documents must be submitted with the application:
• SOA Business License
• AMCO alcohol retail license(s) or event permit(s)
• May submit copy of permit application where SOA permit hasn’t been received
No charge for issuing Special‐Use Certificates
• Allow 5 business days for processing complete applications
• The filing method for special event tax returns will be determined
after we meet with several special event organizers
Contact Information:
Tax Enforcement Officers I:
General Questions and Help with Applications, Payments, or Filings
• By phone: 907‐343‐6670
• By email: wwpt@anchorageak.gov
Tax Enforcement Officers II (field auditors):
• Regina James – 907‐343‐6967
• Paula Birmingham – 907‐343‐6964
• Karol (Karl) Raszkiewicz – 907‐343‐6676
Tax Enforcement Group ‐ Supervisor:
• Paula Reiswig– 907‐343‐6965
