Attention Franklin County Taxpayers! The County is experiencing network server problems and cannot currently accept online payments at this time. Please check back for an update. We are sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience with us. For any questions, please call 462-3438.

Real Estate first half taxes will be mailed in mid-December and are due January 20, 2009. A penalty tax of 10% of the Net Current Tax is charged to parcels when tax payments are late.

Real Estate second half taxes will be mailed in mid-May and are due June 20, 2009. A penalty tax of 10% of the Unpaid Current Tax is charged to parcels when tax payments are late.

Manufactured Home taxes are due July 31st. Payments must be postmarked by July 31st to be considered timely.

Columbus, (OH) -The Auditor and Treasurer are jointly announcing the delay in issuance of the 2008 tax bills. Typically, bills for the first half collection for real estate taxes are mailed on or around December 17th. This year, the ability to enter 2008 real estate tax rates has been held up due to delays in the certification of real estate values and official election results from neighboring counties that have an impact on Franklin County. As a result, Franklin County tax bills which also include many new tax levies which passed this year could not be produced until December 22nd.

The Treasurer’s office received the bill file late Sunday night and has begun converting that file which takes about a day (to actually convert in to the bill format, proof and then approve printing). Today and tomorrow we will issue approximately 216,308 electronic bills to our “bulk” payers. Approximately 205,343 paper bills will start being printed by tomorrow. Paper bills should start arriving in mailboxes as early as Tuesday December 30, 2008.

The due date for payment of real estate taxes is January 20, 2009. If paying by the end of the year is not a concern, please be reminded that to be considered timely, your payment must be postmarked on or before January 20th.

We understand that there may be federal income tax ramifications for some tax payers if they do not make their local real estate tax payment by December 31, 2008. We offer a wide variety of payment options for taxpayers and encourage these customers to take advantage of our online bill payment service:

• After 12:00 p.m. tomorrow (12/23/08) taxpayers may make an electronic payment from their bank account or by credit card by visiting our website at https://www.franklincountyohio.gov/treasurer. Receipt of a paper tax bill is not necessary to make this type of payment.
• When paying by check, please include the parcel number on the check’s memo area to ensure proper credit.
• If paying by the end of 2008 is a concern, and the tax payer does not have access to the Internet or does not wish to pay taxes online, once the taxpayer has received their tax bill, there are still several payment options to ensure payment is made by the end of 2008.
• Payments may be made in person at our office, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. (373 S. High St. 17th Floor, County Courthouse Complex)
• Payment may be made at any of our regional bank branch collection sites (available to customers at Huntington National Bank, National City, U.S. Bank, Fifth Third Bank, Chase Bank and Columbus First Bank). Payments received at any of these locations on or before December 31, 2008 will be considered timely.

As a result of these delays, we are not able to debit the checking accounts on December 31, 2008 for our customers who participate in the Direct Debit Program. The information needed for 2008 taxes was not received in time to prepare a debit file for the banks and also to provide legally required advance notification of the debit amount.

For additional questions regarding payment options, taxpayers may contact the Treasurer’s office at (614) 462-3438 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For questions regarding real estate values or tax rates contact the Auditor’s office at (614) 462-HOME (4663) or www.franklincountyauditor.com.

We are committed to providing excellent customer service to you in the future and we apologize for any inconvenience that this change may cause.

Thank You For Visiting Our Website!

Both the website and the office have undergone major renovations as part of our initiative to reform public services to better meet the needs of the citizens of Franklin County.

Thank you for your interest in the office. We hope you find our web site useful. Please stop back often as we will be updating information on an ongoing basis. Should you have any questions, comments or require additional information please do not hesitate to contact the office at 614-462-3438 or email us directly at Ed_Leonard@franklincountyohio.gov. 373 S. High St. 17th Floor Columbus, Ohio 43215.

We look forward to your input.

If you find that you are having trouble paying your mortgage, or if you are in foreclosure, you need to call for help. Free counseling assistance is available to struggling homeowners regardless of income.

The Franklin County Board of Commissioners, Treasurer, and Prosecuting Attorney have collaborated on a Homeowner Helpline. Calling First Link at 211 will connect you to a local non-profit housing counseling agency that can determine what type of help is best for you. Click here for details.

Learn about income tax deductions available to taxpayers . Find out how right here!

Two or More Children: Families with two or more children who earn less than $37,783 in 2007 (or less than $39,783 for married workers) are eligible for a credit of up to $4,716.

One Child: Families with one child who earn less than $33,241 in 2007 (or less than $35,241 for married workers) are eligible for a credit of up to $2853.

No Children: Workers without a qualifying child who earn less than $12,590 in 2007 (or less than $14,590 for married workers) are eligible for a credit of up to $428.

Please Call FirstLink to schedule an appointment or find a location of a tax site. 2-1-1 is the phone number.

Payment Status- Check the status of your tax payment.

Pay Your Taxes- Pay your taxes online, in person, or by mail.

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