2025 Tax Season 

The deadline for filing for your 2025 City of Fairfield Income Tax Return is April 15, 2026.

The City of Fairfield has mandatory filing for all residents between the age of 18-65, residents over the age of 65 with taxable income or loss, part-year residents, businesses working in Fairfield, employees working in Fairfield whose employer failed to withhold Fairfield taxes at 1.5%, non-residents who own property in Fairfield, and non-residents with income or losses from self-employment.

Tax returns must include all W2s, Federal 1040 (IRS return), and any schedules or supporting documents to be considered filed. If you do not file a federal return, IRS transcripts can be obtained for 2025 after June 15, 2026. NOTE: Transcripts requested for 2025 prior to June 15, 2026 cannot be accepted. See below for how to request an extension of time to file. For more information on how to obtain an IRS transcript, visit www.IRS.gov or contact our office.

To submit your return, you can utilize our e-file service (see below), mail your completed return to 701 Wessel Drive, Fairfield, Ohio 45014, place your completed return in the Income Tax Division drop-box at the address above, or bring your return in-person to our office during business hours.

The Income Tax Division offers in-office assistance in preparing your City of Fairfield return on a walk-in basis throughout the year. Please note: Due to high volume, returns or documents dropped off, mailed, or otherwise submitted to our office during tax season will not be reviewed until after the tax deadline, which may result in penalty and interest due. If you need assistance in completing your return, please make sure to visit us in-office before the tax due date.

Extension to File

If you require an extension to file past April 15, 2026, please complete an extension request form and submit it to our office on or before April 15, 2026. This form can be found on our website under "Individual Tax Forms" or "Business Tax Forms".  An extension for your 2025 taxes will give you until October 15, 2026, to file your return. If you have a federal extension, please submit a copy of the extension to receive an extension of time to file with the City of Fairfield. A separate Fairfield Extension Application is not required in these cases. NOTE: The extension only extends the filing date of the return; the extension does not extend the April 15, 2026, due date for payment of the 2025 tax due, nor does it extend the time to submit 2026 estimated payments.

E-File and E-Pay

The City of Fairfield offers online filing and payment services. To utilize these services, please go to: Fairfield Online Tax Portal. To set up an online account, you will need your tax account number and your social security number. If you do not know your tax account number, please contact our office. There is no fee for filing online, but fees will apply to online payments.   

Taxable Income

• Wages, salaries and other compensation 
  • Typically, qualifying wages taxable to the City of Fairfield are the amount in the Medicare wage box of the W-2 (Box 5). Qualifying wages for a municipality include wages defined in Section 3121(a) of the IRS code plus any amounts not included in the Medicare wage due to some Medicare exemptions.
• Bonuses, stipends and tip income
• Commissions, fees and other earned income
• Sick pay (excluding third-party sick pay)
• Vacation pay
• Foreign-earned income
• Employer paid premiums for group term life insurance over $50,000
• Supplemental unemployment benefits paid by the employer (SUB PAY)
• Severance pay
• Settlement payouts
• Income from wage continuation plans (includes retirement incentive plans and buyouts)
• Contributions made by or on behalf of employees to non-qualified or qualified deferred compensation plans
• Bonuses
• Fiduciary, director, and executor fees
• Jury duty income
• Precinct election official income over $1,000.00
• Fringe benefits 
• Disability pay if received as a benefit from employment 
• Lottery and gambling winnings
• Royalties from tangible property
• Ordinary gains as reported on Federal Form 4797
• Self-employment income (Schedule C)
• Net farm income (Schedule F)
• Net rental income (Schedule E Part I)
• Income from pass-through entities, estates or trusts (Schedule E Part II and Part III)
• Gains from the cancellation of indebtedness to the extent they are taxable for federal income tax purposes
• Uniform, automobile and travel allowances
• Employer provided educational assistant to the same extent as taxable for federal income tax purposes
• Prizes and gifts if connected with employment to the same extent as taxable for federal income tax purposes

Note: The aforementioned list is not all-inclusive. For questions regarding a specific type of income, please contact our office.

Non-Taxable Income

• Interest
• Dividends
• Capital gains (unless considered ordinary income)
• Royalties from intangible property
• Stock options
• Alimony received
• Military pay and allowances
• Third-party sick pay
• Social Security benefits
• Public assistance 
• Unemployment income
• Workers compensation
• Annuity distributions
• IRA distributions
• Pension distributions
• Precinct election official income under $1,000.00
• Income earned by someone under 18 years of age

Credit for Taxes Paid to Another City

• Residents of the City of Fairfield may claim credit for taxes paid to another city up to 1.5% of the income taxed by that municipality. 
• Credit allowed for taxes paid to another city whose rate is higher than 1.5% is calculated by dividing the tax withheld by that city's rate and multiplying that income by 1.5%. No excess tax withheld for a city shall apply to income taxed by another city whose rate is lower than 1.5%.
• Credit for taxes paid on business or rental income to another municipality is given up to 1.5% of the amount taxed by that municipality or the amount taxed by Fairfield, whichever is lower.
• No credit is given for county or school taxes paid.

Estimated Taxes

• All individuals and business entities who will owe $200.00 or more in tax are required to make estimated tax payments throughout the tax year. Penalties will be assessed for insufficient or untimely estimated payments.
• A taxpayer’s final return for the preceding year may be used as the basis for computing the declaration of estimated tax for the current year. In order to meet your estimated tax obligation, 100% of the prior year's tax liability or 90% of the current year's tax liability must be paid on or before January 15 of the following year.
• The declaration and first quarterly payment are due by April 15th, or, for businesses filing for a fiscal year, the 15th day of the 4th month following the end of the fiscal year.
• The remaining quarterly payments are due by June 15, September 15, and January 15 of the following year for individual taxpayers or the 15th day of the 6th, 9th, and 12th months after the beginning of the taxable year for businesses filing for a fiscal year.

1099-G Statements for Refunds/Credit

Each January, the City of Fairfield Income Tax Division issues 1099-G statements to individual taxpayers, notifying them that they have received a refund or credit.

Local tax authorities must file information returns with IRS on Form 1099-G with respect to individuals’ income tax refunds or credits/offsets with respect to income taxes, aggregating $10.00 or more in one calendar year. The return must include the aggregate amount of the local income tax refund (credit or offset).

A “credit or offset” is a tax overpayment which, in lieu of being refunded to the taxpayer, is either applied against an existing liability of the taxpayer, is available for application against a future liability of the taxpayer or otherwise used or available for use for the taxpayer’s benefit.

Please consult with your tax preparer concerning the taxability of this 1099-G issued to you for tax year 2025. If you have any questions, please call the City of Fairfield tax office at 513-867-5327.

Payment Methods

• Online (see above)
• By phone (513-867-5327) using a debit or a credit card. NOTE: During busy seasons, our office receives a large volume of calls. If you are unable to reach us, please utilize one of our other payment methods.
• Check or money order made out to “City of Fairfield Income Tax”. This can be mailed, placed in our drop-box, or brought in-person to 701 Wessel Dr.
• Cash payment made in person
• Listing credit or debit card information in the designated area on the Individual Return, Extension Application, or Estimate Payment Coupon

Interest and penalties will be charged for 2025 tax balances not paid by April 15, 2026.

Payment Plans

If you are unable to pay your tax balance in full, you may qualify for a monthly payment plan agreement. Payment plans have a minimum monthly payment of $100.00 and can extend the time to pay balances due up to 24 months. No further interest and penalty will accrue, and it will pause the collection process, provided the plan is not cancelled for non-payment.

Do You Qualify for a payment plan?

• You have filed all required yearly tax returns
• You do not currently have a payment plan in place
• You have not had a payment plan canceled in the past
• You have no outstanding collections or court cases

What Do You Need to Apply?

• Name
• Valid phone number
• Current Address 
• Must be able to come to the tax office in-person to sign a payment plan agreement

Contact the tax office to discuss this option.