Voluntary Disclosure & Compliance Program

The Voluntary Disclosure & Compliance Program (VDCP) allows businesses and other persons to voluntarily disclose and pay unpaid back taxes and other charges and interest for the previous six years in exchange for a waiver of penalties for the six-year lookback period and a waiver of taxes and other charges, penalties, and interest for periods prior to the lookback period.  

Taxpayers are eligible only if they do not have a business registration certificate, have not filed the required returns, and have not been previously contacted by the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector regarding unreported taxes and other charges or the failure to register. View our Business Registration  page for additional information on registration requirements.

The VDCP applies to the following San Francisco taxes and other charges:

• Business Registration Fees (RG)
• Gross Receipts Tax (GR)
• Commercial Rents Tax (CR)
• Commercial Vacancy Tax (CVT)
• Cannabis Business Tax (CB)
• Homelessness Gross Receipts Tax (HGR)
• Overpaid Executive Tax (OE)
• Administrative Office Tax (AOT)
• Access Line Tax (ALT), Telephone Users Tax (TUT), and Utility Users Tax (UUT)
• Parking Tax (PK)
• Stadium Operator Admission Tax (SD)
• Sugary Drinks Tax (SUGARY)
• Traffic Congestion Mitigation Tax (TCM)
• Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT)
• Cigarette Litter Abatement Fee (CIG)

Learn more about these taxes and other charges.

To be eligible for the program, a taxpayer who owes any of the taxes or other charges covered by the program must meet all of the following criteria:

• Does NOT have a current San Francisco Business Registration Certificate.
• Has NOT filed the required returns for ANY of the taxes or other charges covered by the program.
• Has NOT been previously contacted by the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector about the failure to register or ANY unreported taxes or other charges covered by the program.

Filing and/or payment of other taxes under the San Francisco Business and Tax Regulations Code that are not subject to the VDCP, such as the real property transfer tax, will not affect eligibility for the VDCP.

A taxpayer or representative must complete an application to participate in the program.

• VDCP Application (PDF)

Applicants may remain anonymous during the initial application. However, taxpayers must identify themselves if accepted into the program and will be required to file returns and sign an agreement with the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector to complete the process.

The completed application should be mailed to:

San Francisco Tax Collector
PO BOX 7425
San Francisco, CA 94120-7425

Within 30 days, the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector will review the application and notify the applicant or their representative of their eligibility to participate in the program.

If eligible, the applicant must identify themselves, sign, and enter into an agreement with the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector regarding past taxes and other charges.

• VDCP Form of Agreement (single entity) (PDF)
• VDCP Form of Agreement (combined group) (PDF)

If ineligible, the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector will notify the applicant or representative.

Once the agreement is signed, the taxpayer will have 30 days to register and submit all required filings and payments to the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector. Penalties may apply if filings and payments are not submitted timely. 

Required Filings

• For taxes and other charges due and payable on an annual basis, the taxpayer must file and pay for the six years immediately preceding the tax year in which they apply for the program.
• For taxes and other charges due and payable on a different basis, the taxpayer must file and pay for the tax periods immediately preceding the tax period in which they apply, totaling six years.

The Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector reserves the right to audit any periods to verify the filings are accurate. If a deficiency is discovered, penalties and interest will apply to the amount of the deficiency.

Once the taxpayer has satisfied their obligations under the agreement, the Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector will waive penalties related to the taxes and other charges disclosed and paid for the lookback period, and will waive taxes and other charges, and related penalties and interest for all tax periods prior to the lookback period.

After entering into a VDCP agreement, the taxpayer will not be eligible to enter another VDCP agreement for any other San Francisco taxes or other charges.