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Business Taxes Law Guide—Revision 2024
Sales and Use Tax Annotations
A B C D E F G H I J L M N O P R S T U V W X
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395.0000 Occasional Sales—Sale of a Business—Business Reorganization—Regulation 1595
Annotation 395.1251.500
(f) Sale of a Business Generally
395.1251.500 Sales of Shutters to Related Entity. A taxpayer manufactures, sells, and installs shutters in residences. The taxpayer sells both directly to residential customers and to independent home improvement-type stores. In each instance, the installation of the shutters is performed by the taxpayer. The taxpayer's sales to the stores are at a lower price than its direct sales to residential customers, and the taxpayer separately states installation charges to the stores. However, installation is included in the purchase price to the customer, whether the customer has contracted with a store or directly with the taxpayer. Taxpayer currently treats the shutters as fixtures and charges sales tax on the price at which it sells the shutters to the independent companies, exclusive of installation charges.
The taxpayer proposes to establish a new sales company (separate entity) which will be 95% owned by the taxpayer. The new company will purchase shutters from taxpayer and make sales of shutters to customers, but the installation will continue to be done by taxpayer at a fixed installation charge. The taxpayer will sell the shutters to the new company at a price similar to the price at which it sells to independent companies. In short, the new company will consummate the sales transaction with the customer, but the taxpayer will actually furnish the shutters and install them. The question raised is whether the measure of sales tax should be the price charged to the sales company for the shutters exclusive of installation charges.
The transfers between related parties (e.g., between a corporation and a majority-owed subsidiary corporation) are generally disregarded for sales and use tax purposes if they are not structured as if at arms length. However, if taxpayer and its related new entity conduct their transactions with each other as if at arms length, their transactions would be treated in the same manner as transactions between the taxpayer and the independent home improvement-type stores. The sale of shutters by taxpayer to the new company would be considered as arms length transactions if taxpayer's sales to the new company are made at the same or equivalent price as its sales to unrelated stores. If such is the situation, sales to the new company may be treated in the same manner as taxpayer's sales to independent stores for sales and use tax purposes. 6/3/97.