The following groups can buy a motor vehicle exempt from Idaho sales tax under certain conditions.
Nonresident buyers
A nonresident can be an individual, a company, or an organization.
A nonresident that buys a motor vehicle for use outside of Idaho might qualify for exemption if all of the following apply:
- The motor vehicle is intended for use outside of Idaho and won’t require titling in Idaho.
- It will be taken out of Idaho and immediately registered and titled (if required) in another state or foreign country.
- It won’t be used in Idaho for more than 90 days in any consecutive 12-month period. (A day of use in Idaho is 16 hours during any 24-hour period.)
More information for nonresidents
- A military member who buys a motor vehicle to use in Idaho must pay tax even if Idaho isn’t the member’s state of residence.
- An Idaho resident who forms a business entity in another state to buy one or more motor vehicles doesn’t qualify for this exemption.
- A resident of another state who buys a motor vehicle in Idaho for an Idaho resident who will use the motor vehicle in Idaho doesn’t qualify for the exemption.
- A nonresident that buys a motor vehicle to take out of state doesn’t qualify for the exemption if an Idaho resident is included as one of the following:
- Co-buyer on the sales invoice or retail purchase agreement
- Co-borrower on loan applications
- Co-applicant for title or registration
- Party on any other sales documents
Buyers likely don’t qualify for the exemption if they provide an Idaho driver’s license, Idaho address or Idaho contact information. You could be held liable for the sales tax if you don’t collect it.
The nonresident buyer must give you a completed 
Form ST-104NR – Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – Nonresident Vehicle/Vessel. Keep a copy of the form for your records, and forward a copy to the Tax Commission:
- Scan and email to: vehicles@tax.idaho.gov
- Mail to: Idaho State Tax Commission – Tax Discovery Bureau, PO Box 36, Boise ID 83722-0410
Government agencies, schools, some nonprofit organizations, and American Indian tribes
Buyers listed below are exempt from sales tax on everything they buy, including motor vehicles.
- U.S. federal government agencies
- Idaho state and political subdivisions (such as cities and counties)
- Public schools
- Some nonprofit schools
- Certain nonprofit and health organizations specifically exempted by Idaho law. Examples:
- Nonprofit hospitals
- Qualified health organizations
- American Indian tribes
These agencies and organizations must give you a completed Form ST-101 – Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate. Keep a copy of the exemption certificate for your records. The exemption doesn’t apply to buyers who are employees purchasing an item for personal use and not on behalf of the exempt agency. You could be held liable for the sales tax if you don’t collect it.
Note: For a complete list of exempt agencies and organizations, see our Exemptions guide.
Members of American Indian tribes
The laws for buying a motor vehicle tax free are different for individual members of American Indian tribes than for the tribes themselves. Tribal members must take delivery of the motor vehicle on a reservation for the sale to be exempt from sales tax.
The buyer must give you a completed Form ST-133 – Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – Family or American Indian Sales. Keep a copy of the form for your records. Your records must clearly show that you delivered the motor vehicle to the reservation. Otherwise, you could be held liable for the sales tax.
Interstate commerce
You can sell trucks, buses, and other vehicles that are registered as weighing over 26,000 pounds, as well as trailers exempt when all of the following apply:
- They must be immediately registered and used in the International Registration Plan (IRP) pro rata plan.
- At least 10 percent of the fleet mileage for any reporting period must be outside Idaho.
- For a long-term lease, the vehicle must be titled and registered in the customer’s name. A short-term lease doesn’t qualify for a sales tax exemption when the title remains in the name of the lessor.
Glider kits attached to IRP-registered vehicles are exempt.
Repair parts for exempt IRP vehicles and trailers are taxable.
The buyer must give you a completed Form ST-104IC – Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – Interstate Commerce Vehicles. Keep a copy of the form for your records.
The certificate requires buyers to verify that they’ll use the vehicle in a fleet with at least 10 percent of its mileage outside of Idaho.
- Use tax is due on the vehicle’s value on the last day of the registration period if the mileage is less than 10 percent of the fleet mileage.
- The buyer should evaluate each fleet separately for the IRP exemption If the customer has more than one IRP fleet.
Producers, farmers, and ranchers
The motor vehicle must meet all these requirements to be exempt:
- It can’t be registered.
- It can’t be used on public roads and highways.
- It must be used exclusively in qualifying production activities (including farming and ranching).
Examples:- Pickups used only to feed cattle in a pasture
- Pickups used to transfer work-in-process goods between work sites in a manufacturing company’s yard or factory
Note: Most recreational vehicles are never eligible for the production exemption. For more information, see the Farming and Ranching: Production Exemption guide.
The producer, farmer, or rancher must give you a completed Form ST-101, Idaho Resale or Exemption Certificate.
Vehicles & Vessels: Exemption Certificates.