Michigan Personal Property Tax

Posted by on February 9, 2016

As many of you may remember, the Michigan Personal Property Tax (PPT) was modified in 2014. This resulted in exemptions from assessment of PPT for many small businesses in 2014 and, in the phased-in reduction of PPT assessments, for property with over 50% manufacturing activity through the identification of Eligible Manufacturing Personal Property (EMPP). There is no change to PPT filing requirements for non-manufacturing businesses. As the EMPP begins to phase-in there are essential deadlines to keep in mind. The first is tomorrow, Wednesday, February 10, 2016. If your manufacturing business owns less than $80,000 in industrial personal property, you must file your small business exemption by February 10, 2016.

This assessment will reimburse local governments for essential services. The following deadlines and information must be met under the new Essential Services Assessment (ESA) for manufacturers. Detailed information on the ESA can found at the Michigan Department of Treasury website by clicking here. For specific information on how this change may effect your manufacturing company, please contact your tax professional.

  • February 10: Form 5076 is due to claim a small business exemption. This is for owners of industrial personal property of less than $80,000 in value.
  • February 22: Form 5278 is due to your local assessor. This form will not be mailed to you. This is to be completed by all businesses that are entitled to claim the EMPP.
  • May 1: Your electronic essential services assessment is available online. You must register on the Department of Treasury website in order to review and make any changes to your assessment. You can find registration information here. The assessment information will not be mailed to your company. Your eligible personal property being assessed provided by your local assessors will be available to review online only through the Department of Treasury portal.
  • August 15: The payment for your essential services assessment is due to the Michigan Department of Treasury. Your assessment due can only be found online after registering at the Department of Treasury portal online (registration information above).
  • October 14: Final day for late filed statements and penalties to be paid.

This important reform is estimated to save Michigan manufacturers $500 million annually. Questions about the process can be emailed to ESAQuestions@michigan.gov. If you have questions regarding your company’s needs in regards to this reform, please contact your tax professional.

Sincerely,

Caralee Swanberg, CEcD, CGBP, EGc(TL)
Vice President of Economic Development
Lake Superior Community Partnership

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