The 2026 State Tax Amnesty Landscape
State tax amnesty 2026 programs are now live, closed, or opening soon in five states. New Hampshire opened and closed a statewide amnesty before the year was two months old. Washington ran a narrow disclosure window for international remote sellers that has also since closed. Indiana’s statewide amnesty program opened its enrollment window on July 15, 2026; as of this writing in mid-July 2026, that window remains open.
Illinois opens a remote-retailer program the day after Indiana’s closes, Washington has a second, separate penalty relief program accepting applications on a rolling basis, and New York has a discount program tied to a mandatory vendor reregistration process that’s still awaiting implementing guidance. Taken together, five states have run or are running some form of 2026 tax amnesty or penalty relief, with Guam expected to add a sixth.
Why now? These U.S. states have announced tax amnesty programs primarily to rapidly generate uncollected revenue for state budgets, resolve localized deficits, and bring non-compliant out-of-state businesses into tax compliance.
For a U.S. tax attorney’s clients, and for the accountants and business owners who follow this kind of enforcement news, the relevant question isn’t just “does my state have an amnesty program right now.” It’s whether resolving a state liability through amnesty changes anything about federal exposure, whether a business with nexus in several of these states should be coordinating a single response instead of several separate ones, and whether an amnesty offer is actually the best available option compared to other relief programs already on the books.
2026 Tax Amnesty Programs at a Glance
All dates and terms below are as of this writing in mid-July 2026; confirm current status directly with each state before relying on any deadline.
| State / Program | Window | Eligible Period | What’s Waived | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana Tax Amnesty 2026 | Jul 15 – Sep 9, 2026 | Periods ending before Jan 1, 2024 | Penalties, interest, and collection fees | Open |
| Illinois Remote Retailer Amnesty | Aug 1 – Oct 31, 2026 | Sales Jan 1, 2021 – Jun 30, 2026 | Penalties and interest (flat simplified rates) | Opens Aug 1 |
| Washington Int’l Remote Seller VDP | Feb 1 – May 31, 2026 | 1-yr sales tax; 4-yr + current B&O | Penalties only, up to 39% | Closed |
| Washington ESSB 5814 Penalty Relief | Rolling, through Sep 30, 2027 | Oct 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2026 | Certain penalties only (interest still due) | Open |
| New York Penalty & Interest Discount | Pay in full by Dec 31, 2026 | Liabilities fixed/final by Sep 1, 2026 | 100% penalty abatement + 50% interest reduction | Guidance pending |
| New Hampshire Tax Amnesty | Dec 1, 2025 – Feb 15, 2026 | Liabilities accrued by Jun 30, 2025 | All penalties + 50% of accrued interest | Closed |
2026 Tax Amnesty Programs by State: Indiana, Illinois, Washington, New York, and New Hampshire
Unlike a single federal “tax amnesty,” these are independent state programs enacted under different statutes, with different eligible tax types, different lookback periods, and different mechanics. One of these states, Washington, ran more than one distinct 2026 program.
Indiana
Indiana Tax Amnesty 2026 is the broadest of the programs open as of this writing in mid-July 2026. It runs from July 15 through September 9, 2026, and was formalized through an interim final rule adopted by the Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR) in June 2026. It covers most state tax liabilities, individual and business, administered by DOR or Motor Carrier Services, for tax periods ending before January 1, 2024.
Participants who pay the base tax in full, or enter an approved payment plan through DOR’s INTIME portal, receive a waiver of related penalties, interest, and collection fees, plus release of any related liens. Taxpayers who already participated in Indiana’s 2005 or 2015 amnesty programs are excluded from this one.
See the Indiana DOR’s Tax Amnesty 2026 page for the official eligibility tool and FAQ, and our in-depth guide to Indiana Tax Amnesty 2026 for a full walkthrough of eligibility, payment mechanics, and tax planning considerations.
Illinois
Illinois’s 2026 remote retailer tax amnesty is narrower and business-specific. It runs August 1 through October 31, 2026, the day after Indiana’s window closes, and applies only to remote retailers, businesses with no physical presence in Illinois that have economic nexus there, with unpaid sales tax on sales made between January 1, 2021, and June 30, 2026. Participants pay simplified flat rates (9% on general merchandise, 1.75% on qualifying food, drugs, and medical items) instead of reconstructing jurisdiction-specific rates, and the state waives penalties and interest on qualifying periods.
It also functions as a way to get ahead of Illinois’s new destination-sourcing documentation requirements, which took effect January 1, 2026, and can otherwise expose non-compliant remote sellers to a 15% catch-all rate on undocumented sales locations. This program runs alongside Illinois’s “Leveling the Playing Field” legislation, which multiple out-of-state retailers have challenged as discriminating against interstate commerce; the highest-profile case settled in 2024, but litigation on the underlying constitutional questions has continued. That dispute is addressed further below.
See the Illinois Department of Revenue’s Tax Amnesty program page for registration steps, and our overview of Illinois’s tax amnesty changes for more on compliance strategy. Work with a tax specialist in Illinois.
Washington
Washington ran two separate, unrelated 2026 programs. The first, a voluntary disclosure window for international remote sellers, ran February 1 through May 31, 2026, and has already closed. It was limited to businesses headquartered outside the U.S. with no Washington employees or real property, and offered a reduced one-year lookback for sales tax, a reduced four-year-plus-current-year lookback for Business & Occupation (B&O) tax, and waiver of penalties that could otherwise total up to 39% of the assessment.
The second, open as of this writing in mid-July 2026, is penalty relief tied to ESSB 5814, a state law that made a range of previously exempt services taxable starting October 1, 2025. Washington’s Department of Revenue acknowledged that change was difficult for affected businesses to track and is offering relief, not full amnesty, on unpaid retail sales and use tax for reporting periods from October 1, 2025, through December 31, 2026. Interest is still owed, and applications are accepted on a rolling basis through September 30, 2027.
New York
New York’s approach is different in kind. Part N of New York’s fiscal year 2027 budget bill pairs a mandatory vendor sales tax certificate reregistration process with a sales and use tax penalty and interest discount program for certain vendors, to be established by the Department of Taxation and Finance by the end of 2030. Eligible taxpayers with a sales and use tax liability that became fixed and final on or before September 1, 2026, and who have no further right to administrative or judicial review, can qualify for a 100% penalty abatement plus a 50% interest reduction if paid in full by December 31, 2026.
The Department hasn’t issued dedicated program guidance yet; see this summary of New York’s sales tax reregistration program for the underlying budget bill provisions.
New Hampshire
New Hampshire already ran and closed a statewide amnesty, from December 1, 2025 through February 15, 2026, covering all taxes administered by its Department of Revenue Administration for liabilities that accrued on or before June 30, 2025, with a waiver of all penalties and half of accrued interest. Notably, New Hampshire stated it would not require taxpayers to forfeit pending appeal rights to participate, and separately warned that penalty and interest relief will be harder to get outside the amnesty window for liabilities that could have qualified.
Guam is expected to run a 2025-liability amnesty program under Public Law 38-115, covering business privilege tax and, for the first time, real property tax, though the Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation has not yet released program dates.
2026 Tax Amnesty Eligibility, Deadlines, and Penalty Waivers by State
The programs differ enough that treating them as interchangeable is a mistake. A few distinctions matter most for anyone evaluating whether to participate:
- Eligible tax types vary. Indiana’s program is broad and covers most listed taxes; Illinois and Washington’s programs are limited to sales, use, and B&O tax exposure tied to specific triggers (economic nexus and international status for remote sellers, ESSB 5814’s expanded tax base for in-state businesses).
- What gets waived is not uniform. Indiana waives penalties, interest, and collection fees. Illinois waives penalties and interest for qualifying periods. Washington’s closed international-seller program waived penalties only, up to 39% of the assessment; its open ESSB 5814 program waives only certain penalties, and interest still accrues and is still due. New York’s program is a partial interest discount, not a full waiver. New Hampshire, before it closed, waived all penalties and half of accrued interest.
- Deadlines don’t align, and some have already passed. New Hampshire’s window closed February 15, 2026; Washington’s international-seller window closed May 31, 2026. Indiana’s window closes September 9, 2026; Illinois’s opens the next day and runs through October 31, 2026; Washington’s ESSB 5814 relief accepts applications through September 30, 2027; New York’s discount program requires payment in full by December 31, 2026, once guidance is issued.
- Past participation can disqualify you. Indiana specifically excludes taxpayers who used its 2005 or 2015 amnesty programs, a detail that’s easy to miss if you’re relying on general amnesty coverage rather than the current program’s actual terms.
None of these programs affect federal tax liability. Paying off a state liability under amnesty resolves the state assessment; it does nothing to a corresponding, or unrelated, IRS liability, and there is no federal counterpart to a state tax amnesty program. The IRS instead offers standing relief mechanisms available year-round: first-time penalty abatement, installment agreements, offers in compromise, and, for taxpayers with willful compliance failures, the Voluntary Disclosure Practice.
See our summary of 2026 IRS Voluntary Disclosure Program changes for more on how that federal track works. A taxpayer weighing whether a state amnesty makes sense should be looking at the whole picture, not just whichever state deadline is coming up next.
What State Tax Amnesty Doesn’t Cover: Appeal Rights and Pending Legal Challenges
Amnesty programs are usually framed as a straightforward compliance decision: pay now, save on penalties and interest. That framing misses a real risk for taxpayers who have, or could have, a live legal argument against the underlying liability.
Illinois’s remote retailer amnesty runs alongside its “Leveling the Playing Field” legislation, which imposes sourcing and reporting obligations on remote retailers that in-state retailers don’t face. Multiple out-of-state retailers, including PetMeds and Coast to Coast Computer Products, have challenged the law as discriminating against interstate commerce in violation of the dormant Commerce Clause. The highest-profile of those cases settled and was dismissed in 2024, but litigation on the underlying constitutional questions has continued since. A remote retailer with a live or potential claim along these lines who pays under the amnesty program to resolve a liability tied to that regime would likely be treated as having conceded the underlying obligation, foreclosing that argument going forward.
The picture is more nuanced elsewhere. Indiana’s own guidance is that paying under amnesty does not automatically forfeit a pending tax notice appeal, but the mechanics are fact-specific: a blanket amnesty payment on all disputed amounts can inadvertently waive rights worth preserving, while structuring the election to cover only undisputed amounts can protect a genuine appeal. New Hampshire went further, stating outright that its 2026 amnesty would not require forfeiting pending appeal rights. The lesson isn’t that amnesty always waives a legal position, it’s that the effect varies by state and by how the election is structured, so it shouldn’t be assumed either way without checking the specific program’s terms.
Before assuming amnesty is the better deal, a taxpayer with a pending dispute, or a plausible basis for one, should weigh the value of that legal position against the penalty and interest savings on the table. That’s a legal judgment, not just an accounting one.
What the 2026 Tax Amnesty Programs Mean for U.S. Taxpayers and Multistate Businesses
For an individual with an old, isolated Indiana liability, the calculus is fairly simple: if the liability predates 2024 and you weren’t part of an earlier Indiana amnesty, the waiver of penalties, interest, and collection fees is generally worth taking before September 9.
The more complicated case is a business with sales tax exposure in more than one of these states, which is increasingly common given how broadly economic nexus rules now reach remote and online sellers. A business that sells into Illinois, Indiana, and Washington could reasonably be looking at three separate amnesty or relief filings on three different timelines, each requiring its own eligibility check, documentation, and payment or payment-plan setup. Treating those as one coordinated compliance project, rather than three unrelated deadlines, reduces the risk of missing a window or making an eligibility mistake in one state because attention was on another.
There’s also a sequencing issue worth flagging: participating in an amnesty program generally requires disclosing the underlying liability, which means it isn’t the right move for a taxpayer who hasn’t yet assessed whether the exposure is larger, or more complicated, than the amnesty program is built to handle. A taxpayer with unreported income tied to the same activity at the federal level should understand how that exposure is treated before opting into a state disclosure that could draw attention to it.
“Businesses that operate across state lines often don’t realize that resolving a liability in one state doesn’t close the book everywhere else,” says David J. Rotfleisch, founder of Rotfleisch & Samulovitch Professional Corporation. “An amnesty window is worth taking seriously, but it should be evaluated against the taxpayer’s full compliance picture, including any federal exposure, not treated as a one-off deadline.”
Takeaway: Deciding Whether to Use a 2026 State Tax Amnesty Program
Five states have run or are running some form of 2026 tax amnesty or penalty relief, across six distinct programs, on different schedules, covering different slices of tax liability. New Hampshire’s and Washington’s international-seller windows have already closed; Indiana’s remains open as of this writing in mid-July 2026 and closes September 9; Illinois’s opens for remote retailers on August 1; Washington’s ESSB 5814 relief runs on a rolling basis into 2027; New York’s discount program is still awaiting implementing guidance; and Guam’s is still to be scheduled. None of them touch federal tax liability, and paying under amnesty can waive more than penalties and interest, it can waive a live appeal or legal challenge in some states, as Illinois’s remote retailers weighing the “Leveling the Playing Field” dispute should keep in mind. A taxpayer or business with exposure in more than one of these states should treat this as a single compliance and legal review, not a series of unrelated state deadlines.
Top Tax Tips
- Start by confirming the actual eligibility rules and current status of each program that could apply, rather than relying on general summaries of “2026 tax amnesty,” since eligibility periods, excluded taxpayers, and covered tax types differ meaningfully across Indiana, Illinois, Washington, New York, New Hampshire, and Guam, and two of those windows have already closed. Pull your account status directly from the relevant state portal, such as Indiana’s INTIME system, before assuming a liability qualifies.
- If you have exposure in more than one amnesty state, map out every deadline before acting on any single one, since Illinois’s window opens the day after Indiana’s closes and Washington’s runs on a different timeline entirely. Missing a narrower program’s deadline because attention was focused on a broader one is an avoidable mistake.
- Before opting into any state amnesty program, consider whether the same underlying activity creates federal exposure. Disclosing a liability to a state department of revenue does not resolve, and can draw attention to, a related issue at the IRS level. Where both may be in play, it’s worth getting a clear read on the federal picture, including whether a mechanism like an installment agreement, an offer in compromise, or the Voluntary Disclosure Practice applies, before filing anything with a state.
- Keep documentation of whatever you submit under an amnesty program. These waivers are conditioned on full payment or a completed payment plan; a partial or lapsed payment plan can leave the underlying liability, along with the penalties and interest the program was supposed to waive, back on the table.
- If there’s any plausible legal challenge to the underlying liability, get that assessed before enrolling in amnesty, not after. Paying under most of these programs forecloses the ability to raise that challenge later, and the value of a real legal argument can exceed the penalty and interest an amnesty program would otherwise waive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a tax amnesty for 2026?
Yes. Indiana, Illinois, Washington, and New York all have active or upcoming 2026 tax amnesty or penalty relief programs, and New Hampshire and Washington’s international-seller disclosure window already ran and closed earlier in the year. Guam is also expected to open a program under Public Law 38-115, though dates haven’t been set.
What is the tax amnesty program in Indiana?
Indiana Tax Amnesty 2026 is a statewide program running July 15 through September 9, 2026, that lets individuals and businesses resolve eligible state tax liabilities from before January 1, 2024, in exchange for a waiver of related penalties, interest, and collection fees. It’s administered by the Indiana Department of Revenue and Motor Carrier Services, and taxpayers who used Indiana’s 2005 or 2015 amnesty programs are excluded.
Which states are offering tax amnesty programs in 2026?
Indiana, Illinois, Washington, and New York all have active or upcoming 2026 programs, and New Hampshire already ran and closed one. Indiana’s is a broad, statewide amnesty; Illinois’s applies only to remote retailers; Washington has run two separate, narrower programs; and New York’s is a partial interest discount tied to a mandatory vendor reregistration process.
When does Indiana’s Tax Amnesty 2026 program end?
Indiana’s enrollment window runs from July 15 through September 9, 2026. Payment plans set up during that window must be completed according to their terms by June 7, 2027.
Who is eligible for Indiana’s Tax Amnesty 2026?
Individuals and businesses with eligible state tax liabilities managed by the Indiana Department of Revenue or Motor Carrier Services, for tax periods ending before January 1, 2024, generally qualify, provided they didn’t participate in Indiana’s 2005 or 2015 amnesty programs.
Can I participate in Indiana’s 2026 amnesty if I used a previous Indiana amnesty program?
No. Taxpayers who participated in Indiana’s 2005 or 2015 tax amnesty programs are excluded from the 2026 program.
Who qualifies for Illinois’s 2026 remote retailer tax amnesty?
It’s limited to remote retailers, businesses without a physical presence in Illinois, that meet the state’s economic nexus thresholds and have unpaid sales tax on transactions between January 1, 2021, and June 30, 2026. It runs August 1 through October 31, 2026.
Did Washington have more than one 2026 tax amnesty program?
Yes. Washington ran a voluntary disclosure window for international remote sellers from February 1 through May 31, 2026, covering B&O and sales tax, which has already closed. It also has a separate, still-open penalty relief program tied to ESSB 5814, for businesses with unpaid sales and use tax on services that became newly taxable on October 1, 2025.
Does Washington’s ESSB 5814 penalty relief program apply to all businesses?
No. It’s limited to businesses with unpaid retail sales or use tax tied to services that became newly taxable on October 1, 2025, under Washington’s ESSB 5814. It waives certain penalties, not interest, and applications are accepted through September 30, 2027.
What is New York doing differently from a traditional amnesty program?
New York isn’t running a conventional amnesty. Its 2026 budget bill ties a mandatory vendor sales tax certificate reregistration process to a discount program offering a 100% penalty abatement and a 50% interest reduction on certain sales and use tax liabilities that are already fixed and final, if paid by December 31, 2026. Full implementing guidance from the state hasn’t been issued yet.
Does participating in a state tax amnesty program affect my federal IRS tax liability?
No. These are state-level programs, and resolving a state liability under amnesty has no direct effect on a separate or related federal liability. Taxpayers with overlapping state and federal exposure need to address each independently.
Is there a federal equivalent to these state tax amnesty programs?
Not in the same form. The IRS doesn’t run a periodic blanket amnesty program, but it maintains standing relief options, including first-time penalty abatement, installment agreements, offers in compromise, and the Voluntary Disclosure Practice for taxpayers with more serious compliance issues.
Does paying under a state tax amnesty program waive my right to appeal or dispute the liability?
It depends on the state. Illinois’s remote retailer amnesty runs alongside ongoing constitutional challenges to the law creating that liability, brought by multiple out-of-state retailers (one earlier case settled in 2024, but litigation continues), and paying under amnesty would likely waive that argument for the paying taxpayer. Indiana’s own guidance is that amnesty does not automatically forfeit a pending appeal, though a blanket election can still waive rights on disputed amounts if not structured carefully. New Hampshire stated its 2026 amnesty would not require forfeiting pending appeal rights at all.
What happens if I miss a state’s amnesty deadline?
The underlying tax liability remains due, along with whatever penalties, interest, or collection fees the program would have waived. Some programs, like Indiana’s, also carry consequences specifically for eligible taxpayers who don’t act during the window, so missing the deadline can leave a taxpayer worse off than if the program hadn’t existed at all.
Should a business with liabilities in multiple amnesty states participate in all of them?
That depends on the facts, since eligibility, cost, and risk differ by program. It’s generally worth evaluating all applicable programs together, rather than one at a time, so decisions in one state account for exposure and deadlines in the others.
Do these tax amnesty programs protect against criminal prosecution?
Indiana’s program includes protection from criminal prosecution for eligible, disclosed liabilities. The other programs discussed here are structured as penalty, interest, or fee relief rather than criminal amnesty, so taxpayers with potential criminal exposure should get a clear reading of what each specific program does and doesn’t cover before relying on it.
DISCLAIMER: This article provides broad information. It is only accurate as of the posting date. It has not been updated and may be out-of-date. It does not give legal advice and should not be relied on as tax advice. Every tax scenario is unique to its circumstances and will differ from the instances described in the article. If you have specific legal questions, you should seek the advice of a U.S. tax attorney.