Tax Type
Retail Sales and Use Tax
Description
Prizes for vending machines placed in West Virginia
Topic
Taxability of Persons and Transactions
Date Issued
02-26-1987
February 26, 1987
Re: Request for Ruling/Sales and Use Tax
Dear **********************
This will reply to your letter of November 13, 1986, in which you request a ruling on the application of the Virginia sales and use tax to certain items used by your business within West Virginia.
Your question deals with prizes placed in coin operated games of chance ("claw" machines) operated by your corporation within West Virginia. With respect to similar items used by your corporation in this state, I ruled on July 11, 1986 that your corporation would be deemed the taxable user or consumer of prizes placed in the game machines. Unlike Virginia, amusements of this sort are subject to the sales tax in West Virginia, thus, you wish to determine the application of the tax to prizes purchased in Virginia for use in claw machines that your corporation operates in West Virginia.
As the fee for the operation of claw machines is subject to the sales tax in West Virginia, your corporation may purchase under resale exemption certificates those prizes that will be placed in claw machines in West Virginia. Therefore, your corporation would need only to remit the tax to Virginia on the prizes that will be used or consumed in this state. In the event that your corporation has paid the Virginia tax on any prizes that were subsequently placed in West Virginia machines, you may seek a refund from the department or from your vendors to whom the tax was paid.
Sincerely,
W. H. Forst
Tax Commissioner
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner