Court Debts

The Minnesota Department of Revenue collects court debts for all the counties in the state. Once a court debt is assessed, the department’s collection costs are added.

Payment of Court Debt Fees

Court debts can be paid in one of two ways: through a one-time payment in full or through a payment agreement. To make a one-time payment in full, see the payment options Payment in Full section. If the debtor has more than one court debt and wants to make a full payment on a particular one, indicate which debt the payment is for on the check or money order. Payments cannot be directed towards a specific debt if entered into a payment agreement. 

Restitution 

A county payment agreement set up to pay court ordered restitution has defaulted if the department is collecting the debt. A payment agreement needs to be set up with the department. The department is not required to provide a payment agreement with the same terms as the county. 

Cancellation of Collection Costs

If one of the following is true, collection costs can be canceled:

• The debtor’s household income for the twelve months prior to the referral is less than 200 percent of the annual federal poverty level. The poverty guidelines can be obtained from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) website. 
• Within 60 days of the department's first contact, the debtor establishes reasonable cause for failure to pay the debt.
• The legitimacy or amount of the debt is disputed and payment is made or a payment agreement is entered into within 30 days after resolving the dispute.
• Collection costs have been added by the referring agency and are included in the amount of the referred debt.