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    • Commissioner of Revenue

    Appeal Process for the Vehicle Personal Property Tax

     

    How to File an Appeal
    To file an appeal, you must have your vehicle individually appraised by an expert appraiser (e.g., car dealer, insurance appraiser, car auctioneer, automobile mechanic). This written appraisal must:

    • Be on the letterhead of the appraiser.
    • Include the name, address, phone number, and signature of the appraiser.
    • Describe the condition of the vehicle on January 1 of the tax year for which the assessment is being appealed.
    • List the specific conditions that make your vehicle worth less than the clean loan value listed in the N.A.D.A. guide (e.g., excessive rust, body damage, missing engine). Excess mileage alone is not a sufficient reason.
    • List each condition that existed on January 1 and the amount that condition contributed to the reduction in the clean loan value for that vehicle.

    Submit the appraisal and a completed Notification of Appeal of Vehicle Personal Property Assessment (170.1K PDF format) form to the Commissioner of Revenue. The Commissioner will review the application, then notify you in writing of her decision. Appealing your assessment does not guarantee that it will be lowered.

    You may also appeal your assessment by filing suit against the Commissioner of Revenue in the Arlington Circuit Court pursuant to Section 58.1-3984 of the Virginia Code.

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    Vehicle Assessment Appeals Process
    Arlington taxpayers may use the Commissioner of Revenue's official vehicle assessment appeals process only if they feel that the Commissioner has not assessed their vehicles correctly because of special circumstances relating to the condition of the vehicle (e.g., excessive rust, damage due to an accident) that may have caused the vehicle's value to be less than the official assessed value.

    All other perceived assessment errors resulting from incorrect or incomplete vehicle information (e.g., wrong make, model, year, location, ownership) are handled through the regular administrative correction process, not the official appeal. Thus, if there is incorrect information on your assessment, if you have sold your vehicle or have moved your vehicle from Arlington, please call the Commissioner's office at 703-228-3135 providing the pertinent information (e.g., date sold, date of move and new address) so the Commissioner can correct your assessment. Because of time constraints during the fall assessment period, the Commissioner recommends that, to avoid a late payment penalty, you pay your bill in full, have the assessment corrected, then receive a refund based on the corrected assessment.

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    Legal Basis for Uniform Assessments
    Virginia state law (Section 58.1-3503.A.3) requires the Commissioner of Revenue to assess vehicles using values found in a "recognized pricing guide," thus ensuring uniformity and equity of all assessments within a jurisdiction. Virginia state law (Section 58.1-3515) also specifies that personal property assessments are to be based on property values as of January 1 of the tax year which begins on January 1 and ends on December 31. To meet these requirements, Arlington uses one of the lowest January 1 values , the "clean loan value," in the N.A.D.A. Official Used Car Guide (Eastern Edition) and other guides published by the National Association of Automobile Dealers or other recognized organizations.

    Nearly all vehicles (e.g., automobiles, trailers, boats) located in Arlington are subject to Arlington County personal property taxes. If you feel your vehicle has been assessed incorrectly, you may appeal your assessment to the Commissioner of Revenue pursuant to Section 58.1-3980, et seq. If, within 30 days of the assessment, you file an official appeal before the tax due date following the guidelines listed below, no late payment penalty will be assessed. If you wish to file an official appeal at another time, you must pay the full assessed amount to the Treasurer by the due date then apply for a refund through this appeal process, or you will be assessed a late payment penalty.

    An appeal is considered official once the required documents have been mailed (as determined by the post office postmark) or delivered to the Commissioner's office.

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    Last Modified: April 26, 2012
    2100 Clarendon Blvd. Arlington, VA 22201 Tel: 703-228-3000 TTY: 703-228-4611