North Dakota Office of State Tax Commissioner
                GuidelineGu          - Voluntary Disclosure Programideline - Voluntary Disclosure Program

The North Dakota Voluntary Disclosure Program (Program) allows a taxpayer that has been conducting business activities
in North Dakota or has been collecting but not remitting North Dakota sales tax to voluntarily come forward
and resolve potential tax liabilities. The Program allows such taxpayers to anonymously seek a resolution with the Office 
of State Tax Commissioner (Tax Commissioner) for income, withholding, and sales and use taxes.

Generally the disclosure period (look-back) is three years for the Program. The length of the look-back period will depend 
upon the disclosure statement provided in the taxpayer’s written request. Based on circumstances of limited presence, the 
Tax Commissioner may enter into an agreement for prospective compliance. The look-back period does not include the 
current tax year if the original or extended due date (if applicable) has not yet passed.

Eligible Participants
  •  A taxpayer that has not filed a tax return or made tax payments to North Dakota for the tax type that is the 
     subject of the Program.
  •  A taxpayer that has not been contacted previously by the Tax Commissioner or the Multistate Tax 
     Commission regarding its filing status.

Application Process
A taxpayer wishing to enter into or wanting to know more about the Program may contact the Tax Commissioner 
anonymously. To enter into a voluntary disclosure agreement, the taxpayer must provide a written disclosure statement 
containing the following information:
  •  The entity type that is applying for participation and a description of the taxpayer’s activities.
  •  The approximate date activities started in North Dakota and the number of years the taxpayer has been doing business 
in North Dakota.
  •  List of years the taxpayer owned or leased property or equipment in North Dakota.
  •  List of years and length of time taxpayer had employees or representatives in North Dakota.
  •  The type of tax or taxes to be included in the voluntary disclosure agreement.
  •  An estimate of the tax liability for the period covered by the proposed voluntary disclosure agreement.
  •  An explanation for the failure to register or file and pay the taxes for past activities.
  •  A statement of whether North Dakota sales or use taxes were collected.
  •  A statement that the taxpayer has not been previously contacted by the Tax Commissioner or by the Multistate Tax 
Commission.
  •  The taxpayer’s proposed voluntary disclosure agreement period.

The taxpayer may preserve confidentiality by not revealing the name of itself or any information that could readily 
identify it during the voluntary disclosure process until the agreement is finalized.

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                                                                                         www.nd.gov/tax 
                                     600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept 127 | Bismarck, ND 58505-0599 
                                            Hearing/Speech Impaired: 800.366.6888

Voluntary Disclosure Program Guideline

Voluntary Disclosure Proposal
The voluntary disclosure request is reviewed by the Tax Commissioner and each tax type request is considered 
separately, based on its own facts. If approved, the taxpayer will receive two copies of the proposed Voluntary 
Disclosure Agreement (VDA). One copy of the VDA must be completed and signed by the taxpayer or its 
authorized representative and returned to the Tax Commissioner within 60 days of the original mailing date. 
If a signed and dated VDA is not received within 60 days, the proposal will be considered withdrawn and the 
VDA void. Upon timely receipt of the signed VDA by the Tax Commissioner, the taxpayer will have 30 days 
to provide the requested information, registration, returns, and schedules. An extension can be requested if the 
taxpayer requires additional time to complete the VDA requirements.

If any of the information received in support of the VDA is misrepresented, the Tax Commissioner may 
consider the VDA void and assess applicable tax, penalty, and interest.

In instances where tax has been collected by the taxpayer from customers and not remitted, the Tax 
Commissioner will require all of the tax collected to be remitted but may consider waiving all penalty, provided 
the taxpayer pays all tax and applicable interest.

Disclosure Contacts
Correspondence requests regarding the Program should be mailed to the address below with attention to the tax-
specific individual. Email and telephone contacts are listed for questions or inquiries.

                      Office of State Tax Commissioner
                      600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept. 127
                      Bismarck, ND 58505-0599

       Income Tax     Sales /Use Tax                                   Withholding Tax
       Gary Feist     Patrick Baros                                    Brittany Herberholz
       701.328.1881   701.328.3007                                     701.328.2209
       gffeist@nd.gov pbaros@nd.gov                                    bherberholz@nd.gov 

For more information on the Program go to our website frequently asked questions at www.nd.gov/tax/faqs/ 

Multistate Voluntary Disclosure Program
A taxpayer that has a tax liability in more than one state may consider applying for multistate voluntary disclosure through 
the Multistate Tax Commission (MTC). For more information about the MTC’s voluntary disclosure program and the 
application process go to www.mtc.gov/Nexus-Program/Multistate-voluntary-Disclosure-Program.

                                                                       www.nd.gov/tax 
                      600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept 127 | Bismarck, ND 58505-0599 
Page 2                                            Hearing/Speech Impaired: 800.366.6888