California FTB Notices, Decoded
The Franchise Tax Board runs its own collection machine, with letters, deadlines, and penalties that are not the IRS's, and in several ways are harsher. Every page below was built from ftb.ca.gov itself: what each letter means, the real deadline printed on it, what happens if you ignore it, and the options that exist at that stage. If your letter is from the IRS instead, use the IRS notice decoder.
The sequence, start to levy
Find your letter
Request for Tax Return
The FTB has no record of your California return and believes you may have needed to file.
Low urgency, 30 days to respond · Respond within 30 days of the date on the notice FTB 4601Demand for Tax Return
You did not resolve the Request for Tax Return, or the FTB moved straight to a demand.
High, a 25% demand penalty is on the table · Respond within 30 days of the date on the notice NPANotice of Proposed Assessment (FTB 5830)
An audit adjusted your return, or you never responded to a demand and the FTB estimated your income.
Deadline driven, 60 days to protest · Protest by the Protest By date, within 60 days of the NPA date FTB 4963Notice of State Income Tax Due
You have a past due balance on California personal income tax.
This is the bill, collection tools unlock from here · Pay or make arrangements promptly; the notice states no fixed day count Final NoticeFinal Notice Before Levy
A balance remains unresolved and the FTB is preparing to levy income or assets.
Urgent, 30 days to request independent review · Request independent administrative review within 30 days of the notice date FTB 2905Earnings Withholding Order for Taxes (EWOT)
The FTB ordered your employer to garnish wages for a past due income tax balance.
Active garnishment, 25% of pay after required deductions · The order runs until the balance is paid or the FTB modifies or releases it FTB 2900Order to Withhold (bank levy), plus the state tax lien
The FTB ordered a bank or other third party to turn over your funds, or recorded a lien.
Active levy, funds can be taken up to the full balance · Contact the FTB immediately; lien reviews carry a 30 day windowHow California differs from the IRS
- Twenty years to collect, not ten. R&TC 19255 gives the FTB 20 years from the latest liability, and the FTB's own example shows a later fee assessment resetting the clock.
- The 25% demand penalty. Ignore a Demand for Tax Return and California adds 25% of the tax due on top of the separate late filing penalty that also caps at 25%. The IRS has no equivalent.
- 60 days to protest, not 90. The Notice of Proposed Assessment's protest window is 60 days, appeals go to the Office of Tax Appeals within 30 days of the Notice of Action, and protesting never pauses interest. Paying within 15 days of the NPA date stops interest without giving up the fight.
- A flat 25% wage garnishment. Tax garnishments run on the federal formula even though California cut ordinary creditors to 20% in 2023, and the state's bank orders can take 100% of available funds up to the balance.
- Lump-sum-only Offer in Compromise. California's OIC accepts no payment plans and no zero-dollar offers, and applying does not automatically stop collection.
- The Top 500 list. Debts over $100,000 can be published twice a year, with professional and driver's license suspension among the consequences, after a 30 day warning.
Behind with the FTB, the IRS, or both?
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General information, not tax or legal advice. Deadlines and figures verified against ftb.ca.gov and leginfo.legislature.ca.gov, July 2026; the controlling dates are the ones printed on your own notice. ClearChoiceRadar is not affiliated with the Franchise Tax Board or any government agency.