NY Tax L § 1407 (2021)
2021 New York Laws TAX - Tax Article 31 - Real Estate Transfer Tax 1407 - Designation of Agents.

§  1407.  Designation  of agents. (a) The commissioner of taxation and finance is authorized to designate such banks, trust companies,  savings banks,  New  York  state  branches  of a foreign bank, industrial banks, savings and loan associations, national  banking  associations,  federal savings   and   loan  associations,  title  insurance  corporations  and recording officers as he shall deem necessary to act as  his  agent  for purposes of collecting the tax imposed by this article. The commissioner of  taxation  and finance shall provide for the manner in which any such person may be  designated  as  his  agent  subject  to  such  terms  and conditions  as he shall prescribe. The real estate transfer tax shall be paid to such agents as provided in section fourteen hundred ten of  this article.  At  the  time such a person shall be designated as an agent of the commissioner of taxation and finance, the commissioner  of  taxation and  finance  shall  prescribe whether such agent shall collect the real estate transfer tax through the sale of documentary stamps, through  the use of a metering machine, by any other method which the commissioner of taxation  and  finance, by regulation, may provide, or by one or more of such methods.  (b) Every person designated to act as an agent pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section shall remit to  the  commissioner  of  taxation  and finance  any  funds  collected  by such agent and any returns filed with such agent under this article, less any fee  allowed  under  subdivision (c)  of  this section, at such times as the commissioner of taxation and finance shall prescribe and shall follow such procedures and  keep  such records  as the commissioner of taxation and finance may prescribe. Each county (other than the counties comprising New York city) and  New  York city shall pay all expenses occasioned by the duties of their respective recording officers to collect the tax imposed by this article, including any expense for extra clerks.  (c)  1.  When  a  recording officer designated to act as such agent is presented with a conveyance for  recording  that  is  accompanied  by  a receipt  issued  by  the  commissioner  pursuant  to  subdivision (c) of section fourteen hundred twenty-three of this  article,  such  recording officer  shall  be  relieved  of  the responsibility to collect the real estate transfer tax thereon. He or she shall nonetheless be entitled  to the  portion  of  such  tax that he or she would otherwise have retained pursuant to this subdivision, as provided by subdivision (b) of  section fourteen hundred twenty-three of the tax law.   2.  When  a  recording  officer  is  presented  with  a conveyance for recording that is not accompanied by a receipt  described  in  paragraph one  of  this  subdivision,  he or she shall collect the applicable real estate transfer tax and shall retain, from the real estate transfer  tax which  he  or  she collects, the sum of one dollar for each of the first five thousand conveyances accepted for recording and for which he or she has issued a documentary stamp or metering machine stamp or  upon  which instrument  effecting  the conveyance he or she has noted payment of the tax or that no tax is due, pursuant to any other method for  payment  of the  tax provided for in the regulations of the commissioner of taxation and finance, during each annual period commencing on the  first  day  of August  and  ending  on the next succeeding thirty-first day of July and seventy-five cents for  each  conveyance  in  excess  of  five  thousand accepted  for  recording and for which he or she has issued such a stamp or upon which instrument effecting the conveyance he or  she  has  noted payment of the tax or that no tax is due, pursuant to such other method, during  such  annual  period.  Such fee shall be payable even though the stamp issued or such notation shows that no tax is due. Such a fee  paid to  the register of the city of New York shall belong to the city of New York and such a fee paid to a recording officer of a county outside such  city shall belong to such officer's county. With respect  to  any  other agents  designated  to  act pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, the commissioner of  taxation  and  finance  shall  have  the  power  to provide,  at  his or her discretion, for payment of a fee to such agent, in such manner and amount and subject to such limitations as he  or  she may  determine,  but  any  such  fee  for any annual period shall not be greater than the sum of one dollar for each of the first  five  thousand conveyances  for  which  such  agent  has  issued a documentary stamp or metering machine stamp or upon which instrument effecting the conveyance he or she has noted payment of the tax or that no tax is  due,  pursuant to  any  other  method  for  payment  of  the  tax  provided  for in the regulations of the commissioner of taxation  and  finance,  during  such annual  period  and  seventy-five cents for each conveyance in excess of five thousand for which such agent has issued such a stamp or upon which instrument effecting the conveyance such agent has noted payment of  the tax  or  that  no tax is due, pursuant to such other method, during such annual period.