County Sales and Use Tax

  1. What is the county sales and use tax?
  2. What is the tax rate?
  3. When must a retailer report county tax?
  4. How do I report the county sales and use tax?
  5. No county tax was paid at the time of purchase. Do I owe tax if I use the item purchased in another county?
  6. What is included in a monthly distribution?
  7. Can we review the transactions that are compiled into a month's distribution?
  8. Why do distributions vary so much from month to month?
  9. Are sales and use taxes by municipality available?
  10. Is a county liable for paying sales tax on its sales?
  11. Is a Wisconsin county liable for the paying sales tax on its purchases?
  1. What is the county sales and use tax?

    The county sales tax rate of 0.5% is imposed on retailers making taxable retail sales, licenses, leases, or rentals or providing taxable services in a Wisconsin county that has adopted the county tax.

    The county use tax rate of 0.5% is imposed on purchasers of items used, stored, or consumed in counties that impose county tax. County use tax must be paid when Wisconsin county sales tax is not charged and no exemption applies.

    For further information see What is Taxable or Use Tax.

  2. What is the tax rate?

    Sixty-two Wisconsin counties have adopted a 0.5% county tax. To see which counties adopted the county tax, see the State, County, and Stadium Tax Rate Chart. Depending on where the sale/purchase occurs and the type of seller, possible tax rates include:

    Caution: Retailers who are not located in a county with a county tax and who have or are required to have a Wisconsin seller's permit or use tax registration certificate, are subject to the county tax and are required to collect and remit it, in certain situations. See Question 3 for examples.

    To determine which county's sales and use tax applies to a particular transaction, click here.

  3. When must a retailer report county tax?

    Retailers who have, or are required to have, a Wisconsin seller's permit or use tax certificate must collect and remit county sales tax if they:

    • ship taxable items, using a third party shipper, to an address in a county that has imposed a county sales and use tax,
    • deliver taxable items with their own vehicle into a county that has imposed a county sales and use tax,
    • furnish taxable services in a county that imposed a county sales or use tax, or
    • otherwise make taxable sales or provide taxable services in a county that has imposed a county sales or use tax
    • sell a motor vehicle, boat, recreational vehicle or aircraft that will be customarily kept in a county that has adopted the county tax.

    To determine which county's sales and use tax applies to a particular transaction, click here.

  4. How do I report the county sales and use tax?

    Electronic filing and payment options include:

    • My Tax Account – The department's online filing and payment system for businesses.
    • Sales Telefile – File and pay your sales tax with any touch-tone telephone. Call (608) 261-5340 or (414) 227-3895.
    • eFile Transmission – Generally used by programmers.
  5. No County tax was paid at the time of purchase. Do I owe tax if I use the item purchased in another county?

    Generally, if an item is purchased in a county that has not adopted the county tax and is later brought to a taxable county where it is used, stored, or consumed, the purchase is not subject to the county use tax.

    Exceptions: Construction materials, titled items and certain purchases by nonresidents:

    • Construction materials purchased in a county that has not adopted the county tax and later used to improve real property in a county that has adopted the county tax, are subject to county use tax. For more information, see Wisconsin Tax Bulletin #157 or Publication 207, Contractors.
    • Purchases of motor vehicles, boats, recreational vehicles as defined in s. 340.01(48r), Wis. Stats., and aircraft. These items are taxed, for county and stadium sales tax purposes, based on the county in which the item is customarily kept.
    • Purchases of snowmobiles, trailers, semi-trailers, and all-terrain vehicles. These items are taxed, for county and stadium sales tax purposes, based on where the buyer receives possession of the items.
    • Sales of motor vehicles, recreational vehicles as defined in s. 340.01(48r), Wis. Stats., aircraft, and truck bodies (including semitrailers) to nonresidents who do not use the property other than to remove it from Wisconsin, are exempt from Wisconsin sales and use tax.
    • Sales of boats, recreational vehicles, snowmobiles, trailers and all-terrain vehicles to nonresidents are subject to Wisconsin sales and use tax.

    For more information, see Reporting Sales Tax on Sales of Motor Vehicles, Boats, Snowmobiles, Recreational Vehicles, Trailers, Semitrailers, All-Terrain Vehicles, and Aircrafts.

  6. What is included in a monthly distribution?

A monthly distribution is the sum of all completed transactions posted in our processing system from the 16th of one month to the 15th of the next month. For example, the sales tax on a transaction in December should be reported on a sales tax return due by January 20 or 31. If the return is processed by February 15, the tax would be included in the February distribution to the county.

Each transaction can be traced to a specific return or action relating to a retailer's (or individual's) sales and use tax account. Transactions are triggered by processing sales & use tax returns (Forms ST-12 and UT-5), motor vehicle, boat, ATV and snowmobile private registrations, refunds and audits. Entries of county use taxes from individual income tax returns are posted as these returns process throughout the year.

  1. Can we review the transactions that are compiled into a month's distribution?

This information is confidential but available. The Department of Revenue provides detail listings upon request. A County staff member who is authorized by their employer can sign a non-disclosure statement with the Department to be allowed access to the detailed information. The detail consists of a listing of all transactions that processed within the distribution period back to the original record that initiated the transaction in our system. To request access to this information, contact Becky Haines at (608) 261-5282, or by email at Rebecca.Haines@revenue.wi.gov.

  1. Why do distributions vary so much from month to month?

The underlying economic activity on which sales and use taxes are based varies by month and season but, in addition, the timing of payments and the processing of returns affects monthly distributions. Some retailers remit tax on a monthly basis, others remit tax on a quarterly or annual basis.

Each month's distribution is typically based on the returns processed from the 16th of one month to the 15th of the next. If a return that is due on the 20th is filed and processed on the 15th or before, one month's distribution may include two remittances from that taxpayer and the next month's distribution would include none. In addition, taxes are not distributed until any errors in the return have been corrected; contacting and verifying information with a taxpayer may be time-consuming and delay the distribution of those taxes.

  1. Are sales and use taxes by municipality available?

Since municipalities do not impose local sales and use taxes, taxpayers are not required to provide information by municipality. Calculating taxes remitted from select ZIP codes does not produce accurate information because ZIP codes are not contiguous with municipal boundaries. In addition, chain stores may file a single return from the ZIP code of the company's headquarters or accounting office rather than the location at which the sales took place.

  1. Is a county liable for paying sales tax on its sales?

Generally, a county is liable for the collection, reporting, and payment of sales tax on its sales of tangible personal property and taxable services. Examples of taxable sales made by counties include the following:

Examples of nontaxable sales by counties include:

If a county makes taxable retail sales or provides taxable services in Wisconsin and does not qualify for the occasional sale exemption (see Publication 206), the county is required to have a seller's permit. To apply for a seller's permit:

  1. Is a Wisconsin county liable for paying sales tax on its purchases?

The answer is no. Purchases by Wisconsin counties are exempt from Wisconsin sales and use taxes. To claim the exemption, the county must give the seller one of the following:

A county may apply for a Certificate of Exempt Status number using Form S-103, available at revenue.wi.gov/forms/sales/s-103.pdf

Additional information is provided in Publication 209, Sales and Use Tax Information for Wisconsin Counties and Municipalities.

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
Customer Service Bureau
Mail Stop 5-77
P.O. Box 8949
Madison, WI 53708-8949
Phone: (608) 266-2776
Fax: (608) 267-1030
Email Additional Questions

Last updated April 1, 2013