Mississippi Lien Access Accounts
Beginning January 1, 2015, the Mississippi Department of Revenue (the “Department”) began enrolling tax liens for unpaid tax debts online on the State Tax Lien Registry (the “Registry”). Tax liens are no longer recorded with Circuit Clerks. A tax lien recorded on the Registry covers all property in Mississippi.
The Registry can be accessed at www.liens.ms.gov. This public facing portal, however, only allows searches based on the name of the individual or business debtor. It does not provide a mechanism to verify if a particular taxpayer is shown on the Registry. For example, a search for “John Smith” will show all “John Smiths” in the entire State of Mississippi and provides no way to confirm whether one John Smith is the same as another John Smith.
The Department is expected to open enrollment for lien access accounts on April 1, 2018 (the “Lien Access Accounts”). This new online lien verification portal will allow closing attorneys and title insurance agents to verify whether a particular taxpayer—identified by their social security number (SSN) or Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)—has any enforceable recorded state tax liens.
The Lien Access Account will allow the registered user to enter a taxpayer’s name and SSN or FEIN. The system will then display all Mississippi tax lien information within the Registry applicable to the combined identifiers. Tax liens canceled due to an administrative correction by the Department and corresponding cancellation letters will not be displayed in the Registry or Lien Access Account. If a lien is satisfied by payment or by accepted documentation, then the Registry and Lien Access Account will reflect that the lien has been satisfied and the date of satisfaction.
It is important to note that the Registry and Lien Access Account will only display liens associated with the specific identification number requested. There may be cases where an incorrect number has been provided for verification purposes or to the agency itself, or that an incorrect number was keyed in the search tool. The Lien Access Account can only attest to the correctness of an exact match of the number.
In order to use the Lien Access Account, the closing attorney or title insurance agent must register for access through their existing Mississippi Taxpayer Access Point (https://tap.dor.ms.gov/). Once registered, additional users may be authorized to use the Lien Access Account only. By using the Lien Access Account, users certify that they have obtained the customer/client’s permission to use the personal identifying information to search for any liens enrolled on the Registry.
There is no charge to register for a Lien Access Account.
For instructions on how to register for a Lien Access Account please see the attached Lien Registry Access Instructions.