[horizontal rule]

Effective: 5/1/1985

Revised: 3/1/2005

[horizontal rule]
[ASU logo] FIN 108: Sales Tax

[horizontal rule]

Purpose
[horizontal rule]

To define university sales transactions subject to Arizona sales tax

[horizontal rule]

Sources
[horizontal rule]
Arizona Administrative Rules and Regulations, R15-5-101 to R15-5-2237
Arizona Department of Revenue
University policy

[horizontal rule]

Background
[horizontal rule]

The university has one Arizona sales tax license covering all taxable sales. Sales tax payments to the Department of Revenue are compiled by Financial Services. Departments desiring to sell goods or services should contact Financial Services to determine whether these sales are taxable and, if taxable, for the procedures to be followed.

Responsibility for making inquiries to Financial Services for sales tax determinations and collection of taxes rests with each university department. Financial Services’ responsibility is to facilitate the overall sales tax process and provide guidance to departments.

[horizontal rule]

Policy
[horizontal rule]

The university is subject to Arizona sales tax; however, this sales tax does not apply to interdepartmental transactions and sales that are casual or inconsequential at the university level. The sales areas subject to sales tax are listed in the table below. D

State Sales Tax Categories
Tax Area Definition Tax Rate
  1. Advertising
Exempt as of December 31, 1985. 0%
  1. Amusements
Admissions to movies, athletic events, concerts, plays, etc., are considered amusements other than for activities or projects of bona fide religious or educational institutions. Essentially, this provision exempts amusement sales for which ASU is the sponsor or promoter. 6.3%
  1. Printing
Sales of printing applies to job printing, engraving, embossing, and copying. 6.3%
  1. Retail
Retail sales include tangible personal property, except textbooks sold by the ASU Bookstore. 6.3%
  1. Publishing
Publishing revenues include sales of newspapers, magazines, or other periodicals, including gross income from subscriptions. 6.3%
  1. Rental of Personal Property
Includes rental or leasing of any tangible personal property. 6.3%
  1. Rental of Real Property
Nonprofit organizations engaged in commercial renting of real property are subject to sales tax. A person or organization that has two or more units of commercial property rented or available for rent is subject to sales tax on the gross rental amounts. Rental of 30 days or more for residency purposes is exempt. .5%
endtable
Goods Purchased for Resale

Goods purchased for resale can be exempt from state sales at the time of purchase; however, they are not exempt from city sales tax. City sales tax must be paid on goods purchased for resale when billed by the vendor.

In order to take advantage of the state sales tax exemption at the time of purchase, departments must collect state sales tax at the time of the retail sale. Additionally, the department must remit the state sales tax collected at the time of the retail sale through the university-wide monthly tax return prepared by Financial Services.


ASU Foundation

Proceeds from the sale of tangible personal property or subscriptions must be deposited with the university if the transaction requires that the department collect and pay sales tax to the State of Arizona. Proceeds from such sales cannot be deposited with the ASU Foundation because it is not established to collect, report, and remit sales tax.


Tax Exemption Certificates

Departments that do not collect sales tax due to the tax exempt status of a customer are responsible for obtaining and keeping on file a tax exemption certificate. The certificate documents the reason for the exemption within the guidelines of the Arizona Revised Statutes. Tax exemption certificates should be obtained on a sale-by-sale basis. Each sale should be considered separately to determine if the transaction is truly tax exempt. Copies of the certificate can be obtained from Financial Services for the vendor to complete. Financial Services also may assist in determining the appropriate tax exemption status of the customer.

 

skip navigation bar


FIN manual | ASU policies and procedures manuals | Search manuals | FIN manual contact | Financial Services Web site

 

Back to Top

Valid HTML 4.01 Transitional