CHAPTER 8. REGISTRATION
IC 6-2.5-8
Chapter 8. Registration
IC 6-2.5-8-1
Registered retail merchant's certificate
Sec. 1. (a) A retail merchant may not make a retail transaction in
Indiana, unless the retail merchant has applied for a registered retail
merchant's certificate.
(b) A retail merchant may obtain a registered retail merchant's
certificate by filing an application with the department and paying a
registration fee of twenty-five dollars ($25) for each place of
business listed on the application. The retail merchant shall also
provide such security for payment of the tax as the department may
require under IC 6-2.5-6-12.
(c) The retail merchant shall list on the application the location
(including the township) of each place of business where the retail
merchant makes retail transactions. However, if the retail merchant
does not have a fixed place of business, the retail merchant shall list
the retail merchant's residence as the retail merchant's place of
business. In addition, a public utility may list only its principal
Indiana office as its place of business for sales of public utility
commodities or service, but the utility must also list on the
application the places of business where it makes retail transactions
other than sales of public utility commodities or service.
(d) Upon receiving a proper application, the correct fee, and the
security for payment, if required, the department shall issue to the
retail merchant a separate registered retail merchant's certificate for
each place of business listed on the application. Each certificate shall
bear a serial number and the location of the place of business for
which it is issued.
(e) If a retail merchant intends to make retail transactions during
a calendar year at a new Indiana place of business, the retail
merchant must file a supplemental application and pay the fee for
that place of business.
(f) A registered retail merchant's certificate is valid for two (2)
years after the date the registered retail merchant's certificate is
originally issued or renewed. If the retail merchant has filed all
returns and remitted all taxes the retail merchant is currently
obligated to file or remit, the department shall renew the registered
retail merchant's certificate within thirty (30) days after the
expiration date, at no cost to the retail merchant.
(g) The department may not renew a registered retail merchant
certificate of a retail merchant who is delinquent in remitting sales
or use tax. The department, at least sixty (60) days before the date on
which a retail merchant's registered retail merchant's certificate
expires, shall notify a retail merchant who is delinquent in remitting
sales or use tax that the department will not renew the retail
merchant's registered retail merchant's certificate.
(h) A retail merchant engaged in business in Indiana as defined in
IC 6-2.5-3-1(c) who makes retail transactions that are only subject to
the use tax must obtain a registered retail merchant's certificate
before making those transactions. The retail merchant may obtain the
certificate by following the same procedure as a retail merchant
under subsections (b) and (c), except that the retail merchant must
also include on the application:
(1) the names and addresses of the retail merchant's principal
employees, agents, or representatives who engage in Indiana in
the solicitation or negotiation of the retail transactions;
(2) the location of all of the retail merchant's places of business
in Indiana, including offices and distribution houses; and
(3) any other information that the department requests.
(i) The department may permit an out-of-state retail merchant to
collect the use tax. However, before the out-of-state retail merchant
may collect the tax, the out-of-state retail merchant must obtain a
registered retail merchant's certificate in the manner provided by this
section. Upon receiving the certificate, the out-of-state retail
merchant becomes subject to the same conditions and duties as an
Indiana retail merchant and must then collect the use tax due on all
sales of tangible personal property that the out-of-state retail
merchant knows is intended for use in Indiana.
(j) Except as provided in subsection (k), the department shall
submit to the township assessor, or the county assessor if there is no
township assessor for the township, before July 15 of each year:
(1) the name of each retail merchant that has newly obtained a
registered retail merchant's certificate between March 2 of the
preceding year and March 1 of the current year for a place of
business located in the township or county; and
(2) the address of each place of business of the taxpayer in the
township or county.
(k) If the duties of the township assessor have been transferred to
the county assessor as described in IC 6-1.1-1-24, the department
shall submit the information listed in subsection (j) to the county
assessor.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by Acts 1982,
P.L.50, SEC.1; P.L.42-1984, SEC.4; P.L.57-1985, SEC.2;
P.L.2-1997, SEC.23; P.L.111-2006, SEC.1; P.L.219-2007, SEC.91;
P.L.146-2008, SEC.316.
IC 6-2.5-8-2
Repealed
(Repealed by P.L.158-1986, SEC.8.)
IC 6-2.5-8-3
Manufacturer's or wholesaler's certificate
Sec. 3. (a) A manufacturer or wholesaler may register with the
department as a purchaser of property in exempt transactions. A
manufacturer or wholesaler wishing to register must apply in the
same manner and pay the same fee as a retail merchant under section
1 of this chapter.
(b) Upon receiving the application and fee, the department may
issue a manufacturer's or wholesaler's certificate for each place of
business listed on the application. Each certificate shall contain a
serial number and the location of the place of business for which it
is issued.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1.
IC 6-2.5-8-4
Exempt organizations; certificate
Sec. 4. (a) An organization, exempt from the state gross retail tax
under IC 6-2.5-5-21, IC 6-2.5-5-25, or IC 6-2.5-5-26, may register
with the department as a purchaser of property in exempt
transactions. An exempt organization wishing to register must file an
application listing its principal location, but the organization is not
required to pay the fee.
(b) Upon receiving the application, the department may issue an
exempt organization certificate containing a serial number and the
principal location of the exempt organization.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1.
IC 6-2.5-8-5
Duration of certificate
Sec. 5. A certificate issued under section 3 or 4 of this chapter is
valid so long as the business or exempt organization is in existence.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by Acts 1982,
P.L.50, SEC.2; P.L.111-2006, SEC.2.
IC 6-2.5-8-6
Outstanding tax warrants; prohibition
Sec. 6. The department may not issue a certificate under this
chapter, if that issuance is prohibited under IC 6-8.1-3-16.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by
P.L.332-1989(ss), SEC.15.
IC 6-2.5-8-7
Revocation of certificate; notice; reinstatement
Sec. 7. (a) The department may, for good cause, revoke a
certificate issued under section 1, 3, or 4 of this chapter. However,
the department must give the certificate holder at least five (5) days
notice before it revokes the certificate under this subsection.
(b) The department shall revoke a certificate issued under section
1, 3, or 4 of this chapter if, for a period of three (3) years, the
certificate holder fails to:
(1) file the returns required by IC 6-2.5-6-1; or
(2) report the collection of any state gross retail or use tax on
the returns filed under IC 6-2.5-6-1.
However, the department must give the certificate holder at least five
(5) days notice before it revokes the certificate.
(c) The department may, for good cause, revoke a certificate
issued under section 1 of this chapter after at least five (5) days
notice to the certificate holder if:
(1) the certificate holder is subject to an innkeeper's tax under
IC 6-9; and
(2) a board, bureau, or commission established under IC 6-9
files a written statement with the department.
(d) The statement filed under subsection (c) must state that:
(1) information obtained by the board, bureau, or commission
under IC 6-8.1-7-1 indicates that the certificate holder has not
complied with IC 6-9; and
(2) the board, bureau, or commission has determined that
significant harm will result to the county from the certificate
holder's failure to comply with IC 6-9.
(e) The department shall revoke or suspend a certificate issued
under section 1 of this chapter after at least five (5) days notice to the
certificate holder if:
(1) the certificate holder owes taxes, penalties, fines, interest,
or costs due under IC 6-1.1 that remain unpaid at least sixty
(60) days after the due date under IC 6-1.1; and
(2) the treasurer of the county to which the taxes are due
requests the department to revoke or suspend the certificate.
(f) The department shall reinstate a certificate suspended under
subsection (e) if the taxes and any penalties due under IC 6-1.1 are
paid or the county treasurer requests the department to reinstate the
certificate because an agreement for the payment of taxes and any
penalties due under IC 6-1.1 has been reached to the satisfaction of
the county treasurer.
(g) The department shall revoke a certificate issued under section
1 of this chapter after at least five (5) days notice to the certificate
holder if the department finds in a public hearing by a preponderance
of the evidence that the certificate holder has violated IC 35-45-5-3,
IC 35-45-5-3.5, or IC 35-45-5-4.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by Acts 1982,
P.L.50, SEC.3; P.L.65-1988, SEC.1; P.L.46-1991, SEC.7;
P.L.88-1995, SEC.10; P.L.227-2007, SEC.58.
IC 6-2.5-8-8
Exemption certificates
Sec. 8. (a) A person, authorized under subsection (b), who makes
a purchase in a transaction which is exempt from the state gross retail
and use taxes, may issue an exemption certificate to the seller instead
of paying the tax. The person shall issue the certificate on forms and
in the manner prescribed by the department. A seller accepting a
proper exemption certificate under this section has no duty to collect
or remit the state gross retail or use tax on that purchase.
(b) The following are the only persons authorized to issue
exemption certificates:
(1) retail merchants, wholesalers, and manufacturers, who are
registered with the department under this chapter;
(2) organizations which are exempt from the state gross retail
tax under IC 6-2.5-5-21, IC 6-2.5-5-25, or IC 6-2.5-5-26 and
which are registered with the department under this chapter; and
(3) other persons who are exempt from the state gross retail tax
with respect to any part of their purchases.
(c) The department may also allow a person to issue a blanket
exemption certificate to cover exempt purchases over a stated period
of time. The department may impose conditions on the use of the
blanket exemption certificate and restrictions on the kind or category
of purchases that are exempt.
(d) A seller that accepts an incomplete exemption certificate
under subsection (a) is not relieved of the duty to collect gross retail
or use tax on the sale unless the seller obtains:
(1) a fully completed exemption certificate; or
(2) the relevant data to complete the exemption certificate;
within ninety (90) days after the sale.
(e) If a seller has accepted an incomplete exemption certificate
under subsection (a) and the department requests that the seller
substantiate the exemption, within one hundred twenty (120) days
after the department makes the request the seller shall:
(1) obtain a fully completed exemption certificate; or
(2) prove by other means that the transaction was not subject to
state gross retail or use tax.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.145-2007,
SEC.8.
IC 6-2.5-8-8.5
Commercial printing sales
Sec. 8.5. A commercial printer is not required to collect or remit
the state gross retail or use tax from a customer that has no duty to
register as a retail merchant under this article, if the customer
furnishes the commercial printer with a statement declaring that the
tangible personal property sold by the commercial printer to the
customer will be resold in the ordinary course of the customer's
business without changing the form of the property.
As added by P.L.70-1993, SEC.4.
IC 6-2.5-8-9
Direct payment permit
Sec. 9. (a) A retail merchant, manufacturer, or wholesaler who is
registered under this chapter may apply for a direct payment permit.
The department may issue the permit subject to such conditions as it
deems reasonable. A permit issued under this subsection does not
expire and is valid unless revoked under subsection (c).
(b) A person who possesses a direct payment permit may, at the
time of a retail transaction, issue a direct payment certificate to a
retail merchant instead of paying the state gross retail or use tax to
that merchant. If the person issues a direct payment certificate, the
person must then pay the tax on that purchase directly to the
department. A retail merchant who receives a direct payment
certificate has no duty to collect or remit the state gross retail or use
tax on that transaction.
(c) The department may revoke a direct payment certificate,
without cause, at any time.
As added by Acts 1980, P.L.52, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.87-1989,
SEC.1.
IC 6-2.5-8-10
Repealed
(Repealed by P.L.211-2007, SEC.49.)
IC 6-2.5-8-11
Commercial printing contracts
Sec. 11. Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, the
following shall not cause a person that has contracted with a
commercial printer for printing to have a duty to register as a retail
merchant or to collect or remit the state gross retail or use tax
imposed by this article:
(1) The ownership or leasing by that person of tangible or
intangible property located at the Indiana premises of the
commercial printer.
(2) The sale by that person of property of any kind produced at
and shipped or distributed from the Indiana premises of the
commercial printer.
(3) The activities of any kind performed by or on behalf of that
person at the Indiana premises of the commercial printer.
(4) The activities of any kind performed by the commercial
printer in Indiana for or on behalf of that person.
As added by P.L.70-1993, SEC.5.
IC 6-2.5-8-12
Contract with call center operator; effect on duty to collect tax
Sec. 12. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article,
the following do not cause a person that has contracted with a call
center operator for a telephone service to have a duty to register as
a retail merchant or to collect or remit the state gross retail or use tax
imposed by this article:
(1) The ownership or leasing by the person of tangible or
intangible property that is:
(A) located at the Indiana premises of the call center
operator;
(B) used to provide or assist directly with the provision of a
telephone service as described in subsection (c); and
(C) not held for sale, shipment, or distribution in response to
orders received as a result of a telephone service provided by
the call center operator.
(2) The activities of any kind performed by or on behalf of the
person at the Indiana premises of the call center operator.
(3) The activities of any kind performed by the call center
operator in Indiana for or on behalf of the person.
(b) Tangible or intangible property that is:
(1) owned or leased by a person that has contracted with a call
center operator for a telephone service;
(2) located at the premises of the call center operator;
(3) used to provide or assist directly with the provision of a
telephone service as described in subsection (c); and
(4) not held for sale, shipment, or distribution in response to
orders received as a result of a telephone service provided by
the call center operator;
shall not be considered to be, or to create, an office, a place of
distribution, a sales location, a sample location, a warehouse, a
storage place, or other place of business maintained, occupied, or
used in any way by the person. For purposes of this section, a call
center operator with which a person has contracted for a telephone
service shall not be considered to be in any way a representative, an
agent, a salesman, a canvasser, or a solicitor for the person.
(c) For purposes of this section, a telephone service includes
soliciting orders by telephone, accepting orders by telephone, and
making and receiving any other telephone calls.
As added by P.L.65-2003, SEC.1.