IMPORTANT DEADLINES FOR BUSINESSES WITH PERSONAL PROPERTY
By Jeff Prang
Los Angeles County Assessor
I want to remind the business community about two important deadlines each year that
can sometimes be overlooked but should not be: the April 1 filing deadline for the
Business Property Statement, and the final May 7 deadline to avoid penalties.
By the time this column appears, the April 1 deadline will likely have already passed.
However, businesses can still file their Business Property Statement through May 7
without incurring a penalty. That is an important point worth repeating: filing after April 1
does not automatically trigger a penalty, as long as the statement is postmarked by 5:00
PM on May 7.
Most businesses are aware of these deadlines and file on time. But occasionally a new
business, or even an established business, overlooks the requirement and faces an
unnecessary additional cost. My goal is to provide clear information so that does not
happen.
Here is what this filing requirement involves: each year, Business Property Statements,
also known as Form 571-L, are mailed by my office to most commercial, industrial, and
professional firms in Los Angeles County. These forms provide the basis for determining
assessments on fixtures, equipment, and other taxable personal property. Businesses
that own business personal property and fixtures with an aggregate cost of $100,000 or
more are required to file the statement, even if they did not receive a mailed-out
statement.
Businesses may mail their completed Business Property Statement to their assigned
district office, which can be located at the top of the pre-printed form or by searching an
Assessor Identification Number (AIN) as well as your business address. The statement
may also be filed electronically, if they qualify. Additional filing information is available
on the Los Angeles County Assessor’s website at
https://assessor.lacounty.gov/businessowners/business-prop-statement-filing.
So, what exactly is business personal property?
In general, business personal property includes all property owned or leased by a
business, excluding inventory, land and structures. It includes machinery, computers,
office equipment such as copiers and telephones, furniture such as desks and chairs,
and business supplies.
Tangible property that is owned, claimed, possessed, or controlled in the conduct of a
profession, trade, or business may be subject to property tax. Business personal
property is valued annually as of January 1.
Although April 1 is the filing deadline established under state law, businesses are
granted until May 7 ( by 5:00 p.m.) to file without penalty. If not postmarked by 5:00 p.m.
on May7 th , a 10 percent penalty will be applied. If May 7 falls on a weekend or holiday,
the deadline moves to the next business day. In 2026, May 7 falls on a Thursday,
making close of business (5:00 p.m.) that day the final deadline to avoid the penalty.
Businesses with personal property and fixtures costing less than $100,000 are generally
not required to file annually unless requested by the Assessor. Instead, a value is
established through an initial filing or an on-site appraisal, and that value may later be
adjusted through subsequent appraisals.
If a business owner disagrees with an assessed value, the first step should be to
contact my office to review the assessment. If the issue is not resolved satisfactorily, a
formal appeal may be filed with the Assessment Appeals Board by November 30. That
appeal right exists independently of the Assessor’s review process.
One final point is especially important: if the Assessor’s Office mails you a Business
Property Statement, you are required by law to return it, regardless of the amount of
personal property involved.
