Taxpayers

• Due to, and payable to, City of Watertown in December through July 31.
• For current year tax balance, or questions, call City of Watertown Treasurer at 920-262-4007.
• Current year tax information may not be complete on the Dodge County website until early August - AFTER the city closes current year collections, uploads those to Dodge County, and completes their current year settlement process.
• Due dates for City of Watertown's three-installment payment option:
  • January 31 - first installment due on or before.
  • April 30 - second installment due on or before.
  • July 31 - third installment due on or before.
  • If any installment payment is late;
    • Any unpaid current year taxes becomes delinquent and interest begins to accrue on the unpaid tax amount.
    • In this situation, call the City of Watertown Treasurer for correct balance due if paying before August 1.
    • After August 1, delinquent taxes are due to Dodge County.

Current year tax year paid in December or January:

• First installment payments are due January 31.
• Payable to, and collected by, your Local Treasurer.
• Mail to your local treasurer at mailing address on your tax bill.
• Check with your local treasurer if they offer electronic payment options.
• For local payment locations and hours, see information enclosed with your tax bill.
• ANY AMOUNT PAID in December or January is also paid to your local treasurer- second installments, full amounts, or any amount in between.
• Current year tax information is not available on the Dodge County website until early January for December collections, and early February for January collections, AFTER the municipality uploads their collections to Dodge County.

Current tax year Second Installment Payments:

• Payable to, and collected by, Dodge County Treasurer.
• Mailed to: Dodge County Treasurer, 127 E. Oak St., Juneau, WI 53039.

Delinquent Taxes:

• Payable to, and collected by, Dodge County Treasurer,
• EXCEPT City of Watertown who collects delinquent current year taxes through July 31.
• On September 1, parcels with current year delinquent tax are statutorily issued a certificate number (lien). This lien is voided when the taxes are paid.
• The law also requires the county treasurer to mail property owners a "Notice of Issuance of Tax Certificate" after certificate numbers are issued. This means that no sooner than three years later, the tax foreclosure process begins.
• Dodge County follows the In rem tax foreclosure process, outlined in Wisconsin State Statutes Chapter 75 - Land Sold For Taxes.

Wisconsin State Statutes About Delinquent Taxes

• Missed 1st Installment:
  • If the first installment is not paid on or before January 31, the entire amount of the taxes remaining unpaid is delinquent as of February 1.
  • Wisconsin State Statutes 74.12(7)

• Missed 2nd Installment:
  • If the second installment is not paid on or before 5 working days after July 31, the entire amount of unpaid taxes is delinquent.
  • On August 1, interest and penalty are charged back to February 1.
  • Wisconsin State Statutes 74.11(8)

• Tax Bill Not Received:
  • We cannot forgive interest and penalty for any reason.
  • Wisconsin State Statutes 74.09(6) states: "Failure to receive a property tax bill does not affect the validity of the general property taxes, special taxes, special charges and special assessments levied on the tax collection of delinquent general property taxes, special taxes, special charges, and special assessments."

• Interest and Penalty:
  • All delinquent taxes are subject to interest of 1% per month (fraction of a month counts as a whole month) from February 1 until paid, per Wisconsin State Statutes 74.47, and an additional 0.5% per month penalty per county ordinance.
  • Interest and penalty from February 1 - August 1 is 10.5%.

• Wisconsin Act 12, enacted in 2023, changed how personal property is taxed.
• Personal property no longer has its own tax roll and is now part of the real estate tax roll.
• Now, former personal property either has a new tax key number, or has been incorporated into an existing real estate parcel.
• Former personal property with delinquent tax remains due to your local treasurer.
• Contact your local assessor with assessment questions.

• Delinquent taxes are always paid to the Dodge County Treasurer. 
• Pay 2025 Tax Year bills to your Municipal Treasurer.
• Refer to the "coupon" at the bottom of your tax bill for payment information.
• Does your Local Treasurer accept electronic payments? Contact them.
• DO NOT MAIL TO, OR PAY, 2025 TAXES TO THE DODGE COUNTY TREASURER. IF RECEIVED, WE WILL MAIL THESE PAYMENTS BACK TO YOU.

CREDIT CARD PAYMENTS THROUGH THIRD PARTY VENDOR. FEES APPLY.

• Credit/Debit cards (online and phone) fee is approximately 3.0%.
• Electronic checks (online only) fee is approximately $3.00.
• ACI Payments, Inc. (then select "Local Payments") 
• 800-272-9829
• Use Jurisdiction Code: 5936.

• When sending tax payments through the mail, the United States Postal Service recommends allowing 7-10 days for delivery.
• If you mail your payment near the end of the month, we recommend you walk it in to the Post Office and ask them at the counter to hand-postmark your envelope. This ensures that your mail will have a current-month postmark date.
• When sending payments, please include the tax bill payment stub (on the bottom of your tax bill) so the payment will be applied to the correct parcel., or include a note with your parcel number(s).
• If you require a receipt, include a self addressed stamped envelope with your payment, or no receipt will be mailed. Payment details are available on the Land Information Search Tool. 

Postmarks determine if your first installment is timely or delinquent.

• Only United States Postal Service postmarks (not private postage machine postmarks) are valid for determining if a payment is timely or delinquent.
• A minimum of the first installment is due to your local treasurer by January 31.
• If the first installment option is selected, second installments are due to Dodge County by July 31.
• Mail postmarked ON or BEFORE the due date is timely.
• Mailed payments postmarked AFTER the due date are delinquent if not received and "IN HAND", during the five-business-day statutory Grace Period.
• All payments received and "IN HAND" during the Grace Period are late, but no interest and penalty is charged.