Search Category: Sales Tax

Buying Goods for Resale – Printing and Publishing

Buying if you qualify for the production exemption

You can buy certain goods exempt if you qualify for the production exemption. But you must carefully evaluate your purchases to see if they’re exempt when you’re a printer making and selling a mixture of both tangible personal property and non-tangible pesonal property (e.g., digital media).

Purchases that can qualify

Examples of items that might qualify for the exemption:
  • Computer hardware and software that operate production equipment
  • Film processors
  • Photo printing equipment
  • Typesetting equipment
  • Cameras
  • Contact frames
  • Plate burners and processors
  • Step-and-repeat machines
  • Color-key proofing systems
  • Laminated proofing systems
  • Offset and letter presses
  • Cutters to size material before printing and in the bindery process
  • Stitchers, trimmers, folders, gluers, drills, punches and binders used in the bindery process
  • Paper, ink and other supplies which become part of the product
  • Chemicals, catalysts and other materials that make your product more marketable
  • Copiers
To buy qualifying items exempt, give the seller a completed pdf Form ST-101, Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate.

Purchases that don't qualify

Examples of items you must pay tax on when you buy them:

  • Air compressors used to clean production equipment
  • Equipment used in maintenance and repair activities
  • Equipment and supplies used in selling and distribution activities
  • Office equipment and supplies
  • Cleaning supplies
  • Coffee, coffee cups

Free newspapers

Certain equipment and materials used directly and primarily to produce free newspapers are exempt. The equipment and materials must be essential to the publication of free newspapers. A publication qualifies as a free newspaper if all of the following apply:
  • Its largest source of revenue comes from advertising.
  • Its content has at least 10% informative material that doesn’t produce income.*
  • It’s produced in a newspaper format, as defined by Sales Tax Rule 127.
  • It’s publicly distributed without charge.
The buyer must give you a completed pdf Form ST-101, Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate.

Percentage computed on an average annual column inch basis.

Vending machines

If you operate a self-service copier, you might be able to buy it exempt. An automated device that sells taxable goods and accepts only legal money as payment is exempt. This includes devices that allow customers to print photocopies or photographs when they insert legal money into the machine. Legal money means coins, bills, debit cards or credit cards.

The operator of a vending machine must follow special rules related to sales tax on sales from the vending machine. See Vending Machines and Retailers.

To buy the vending machine exempt, give the seller a completed pdf Form ST-101, Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate.

Read more in our Vending Machines guide.

Recordkeeping for Printing and Publishing

You must keep records of all the purchases and sales your business makes. You must have a valid seller’s permit and your records must show that you properly collected, reported and forwarded taxes to Idaho. Learn how to register for a free permit on our Idaho Business Registration Information page.

Records you must keep

  • Normal books of account. (Books of account can include information stored on computers.)
  • Documents that support entries in the books of account.
    Examples:
    • Bills
    • Receipts
    • Invoices
    • Cash register tapes
    • Job or work orders
    • Contracts
    • All schedules or working papers used to prepare your tax returns
  • All records of sales (and credit granted for returned items).
  • Purchases.
  • Tax returns.
  • Tax payments.
  • Copies of Form ST-101, Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate, for all exempt buyers.
    Note: Keep buyers’ exemption certificates for as long as you do business with those buyers, plus four years. We’ll bill you for tax due if you don’t have completed exemption certificates for buyers you sell to tax exempt.

What the records must show

  • Gross receipts from sales and services made in Idaho, even sales that you or your customer might consider exempt from tax. If you deliver the product or service somewhere other than your place of business, you also must keep records that prove where delivery took place.
  • The identity of customers claiming an exemption, the type of exemption, and what you sold them tax exempt.
  • All deductions claimed in filing returns.
  • The total purchase price of anything bought for sale, rental, lease, or your own use.
  • The amount of sales tax collected from your customer or that you paid to a vendor.
  • Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate, for all exempt buyers.
    Note: Keep buyers’ exemption certificates for as long as you do business with those buyers, plus four years. We’ll bill you for tax due if you don’t have completed exemption certificates for buyers you sell to tax exempt.

You must keep all sales and use tax records for at least four years. You should keep records for seven years if you don’t file returns.

Printing and Publishing Laws and Rules

Learn more about printing and publishing:

Printing and Publishing Basics Guide

This guide explains Idaho sales and use tax for commercial printers. Commercial printers are retailers who produce printed materials that they’ll sell. This guide refers to commercial printers and publishers as “printers.”

As a printer, you must have a valid seller’s permit, collect sales tax, file a sales tax return and forward the tax to the Tax Commission. See our Retailers guide for information about getting an Idaho seller’s permit, doing business in Idaho and much more.

Income tax note: For multistate income tax apportionment, see Income Tax Rule 580.01.f.

Facility Rental – Recreation and Admissions

You can determine whether you should charge sales tax to someone renting all or part of your facility by asking these questions:

  1. Will the renter charge admission?
    Don’t collect tax from someone renting your facility if they’ll charge admission to an event they’ll hold there. They must give you a completed pdf Form ST-101 – Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate, to document this.
  2. If the renter won’t charge admission, is the use recreational?
    If the use is recreational, you must charge sales tax, even if your facility isn’t a “recreational” facility. Your records must document that the use wasn’t recreational.

If you rent your facility to someone who’ll put it to both taxable and nontaxable uses, you must separately state the charge for the nontaxable use for it to be exempt (not taxable) from sales tax. Otherwise, the entire cost is taxable.

NOTE: Special rules apply to hotel and motel operators. For more information, see our Hotels, Motels and Short-Term Rentals guide.

Recreation and Admissions Events

Tournaments and events

You must collect sales tax on fees you charge participants to enter a tournament or to participate in an organized event. You also must pay sales or use tax on any tangible personal property used or consumed during the event. This includes trophies or prizes handed out at the end of the event.

Entry fees (professional athletes or events)

Fees that professional athletes pay to participate in sanctioned events or tournaments aren’t taxable. The professional athlete’s participation isn’t for recreation; it’s as an occupation.

Example: Professional golf tournaments

Mixed participants (professional and amateur)

You might have an event that has both professional and amateur athlete participation. Organizers normally segregate these events into different classifications for the athletes.

  • Entry fees for the professional classifications aren’t taxable.
  • Entry fees for the amateur classifications are taxable.

Examples of events for mixed participants:

  • Pro-Am golf tournaments

Recreation and Admissions Equipment

You must pay sales tax on any equipment and supplies you buy to run your facility.

Examples of recreation providers:

  • Health clubs
  • Racquetball clubs
  • Bowling alleys
  • Pool halls
  • Carnivals
  • Carnival-type rides
  • Outfitters
  • Batting cages
  • Skating rinks
  • Golf courses
  • Miniature golf courses

Items you rent to customers

The law treats equipment (e.g., skates, golf carts, bowling shoes) that you rent to customers for an additional charge as items you’re buying for resale. You can buy these items without paying sales or use tax if you give your supplier a completed pdf Form ST-101, Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate.

Recreation and Admissions Laws and Rules

Learn more about Recreation and Admissions:

  • Sale (Idaho Code section 63-3612 – (2)(e) and (f))
  • Mixed Transactions (Sales Tax Rule 011)
  • Admissions Defined (Sales Tax Rule 030)
  • Food, Meals, Or Drinks (Sales Tax Rule 041)
  • Outfitters, Guides, And Like Operations (Sales Tax Rule 047)
  • Sales To And Purchases By Nonprofit Organizations (Sales Tax Rule 085)
  • Sales And Purchases By Religious Organizations (Sales Tax Rule 086)
  • Lease Or Rental Of Motion Picture Television Film (Sales Tax Rule 087)
  • Exemptions On Purchases By Political Subdivisions, Sales By The State Of Idaho, Its Departments, Institutions, And All Other Political Subdivisions (Sales Tax Rule 094)
  • Use Of A Recreational Facility, Instructional Fees, And Pari-Mutuel Betting (Sales Tax Rule 129)

Recreation and Admissions Basics Guide

Do you charge admission to a place or event? Do you charge for using, or privilege of using, recreational equipment, meeting rooms or facilities? This guide can help you understand sales tax requirements for your business as they relate to recreation and admissions in Idaho.

Recreation

Recreation is defined* as the “refreshment in body or mind, as after work, by some form of play, amusement or relaxation or any form of play, amusement, or relaxation used for this purpose such as games, sports, or hobbies.”

Consider the following when determining the taxability of a recreational activity:

Taxable

  • Charges for the use of a facility for recreational purposes
    • Example: Charges to use a swimming pool
  • Charges to participate in a recreational program or event
    • Example: Charges to participate in sports leagues

Not Taxable

  • Separately stated charges for instruction
    • Example: Instructional fees for jazzercise, aerobics, dance, and swimming aren’t taxable when they’re separately stated from the facility and participation fee. 

NOTE: Monitoring activities, such as a lifeguard at a swimming pool, aren’t considered instruction.

* Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition, Ed. Michael Agnes, New York: Macmillan USA, 1999.

Taxable Sales – Recreation and Admissions

Taxable sales include:

  • Fees paid to gain admission to a place or event.
  • Fees paid to use, or to have the privilege of using, tangible personal property or facilities for recreation. Tangible personal property is property that you can feel or touch and that isn’t “real property” (e.g., real estate).

Fees paid to participate in recreational activities

Fees paid to participate in recreation activities are generally taxable.

Admission charges

Admissions charges are generally taxable.

Charging a whole-dollar amount

You must separately state the tax on the receipt, invoice or ticket you give to your customer, even if you want to charge a whole-dollar amount for the price of admission, plus tax.

“Suggested” donations

  • If you suggest a price for an admission, even if you call it a donation, you must collect sales tax.
  • If you don’t set or suggest a price (or donation) and admission is allowed, don’t collect sales tax.

Admissions that nonprofit groups charge

You don’t need to collect sales tax on sale of admissions if you’re an organization conducting an exempt function as defined in section 527 or nonprofit organization registered as a 501(c)(3) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and all of these are true:

  • The event is not predominantly recreational or commercial.
  • Any included entertainment value is minimal when compared to the price for attendance.
  • Your nonprofit organization paid sales or use tax on taxable property or services used during the event.

See Nonprofit and Religious Groups for additional information.

Fees for instruction

Instruction fees for swimming, jazzercise, dance, yoga, karate or tennis lessons aren’t taxable if you separately state the instruction fees from the facility fee.

The whole fee is taxable if you don’t separately state the instruction fees from the facility fee on a sales receipt.