Taxpayers get a reprieve this month in their remittance of the Cook County use tax, normally due on 20th day each month. In July, payment for June transactions is not owed until July 30.

The extension was granted because the county’s new online payment portal was not available until July 6. Starting this month, payment can only be made online.

Taxpayers will want the extra time to file because the ability to upload voluminous data does not yet exist and there is no timetable for when that ability will be available. But Michael Luzzi from the Cook County Revenue Department said that shortcoming is not a deal-breaker. 

"You can do this (data entry) throughout the month," Luzzi said. "You don’t have to do it (file) in one sitting."

Cook County’s use tax amounts to 1% of the transactional amount of goods purchased at retail and titled or registered at an address within the county.

The department relaxed its reporting demands (see reporting FAQs) after listening to feedback from dealerships during June informational webinars about the changeover.

"We contended that listing all sales separately in Schedule A, along with Sales Invoice Date, Sales Invoice Number, Name of Purchaser, VIN, Amount Subject to Tax, and Cook County Use Tax was overly burdensome. This has been modified to require only the completion of two lines on the schedule: one for New Vehicles and the second for Used Vehicles, with the date being always the last day of the month," said Dennis O’Keefe, the CATA’s general counsel.

Similarly, lease transactions, reported on Schedule B, require the same data entry. The county also allowed that Sales to a Dealer for Resale (wholesales) need not be scheduled, meaning Schedule D can be left blank. For Purchases for Dealer Use, reported on Schedule E, the transaction amounts from all transactions also can be summarized on one line. 

 

Direct questions about the new mandate to (312) 603-6961 or to revenuecompliance@cookcountyil.gov.