Ohio Revised Code
Chapter 5739 | Sales Tax
Section 5739.033 | Location of Sale.

Effective: September 29, 2017
Latest Legislation: House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly
(A) The amount of tax due pursuant to sections 5739.02, 5739.021, 5739.023, and 5739.026 of the Revised Code is the sum of the taxes imposed pursuant to those sections at the sourcing location of the sale as determined under this section or, if applicable, under division (C) of section 5739.031 or section 5739.034 of the Revised Code. This section applies only to a vendor's or seller's obligation to collect and remit sales taxes under section 5739.02, 5739.021, 5739.023, or 5739.026 of the Revised Code or use taxes under section 5741.02, 5741.021, 5741.022, or 5741.023 of the Revised Code. Division (A) of this section does not apply in determining the jurisdiction for which sellers are required to collect the use tax under section 5741.05 of the Revised Code. This section does not affect the obligation of a consumer to remit use taxes on the storage, use, or other consumption of tangible personal property or on the benefit realized of any service provided, to the jurisdiction of that storage, use, or consumption, or benefit realized.
(B)(1) Beginning January 1, 2010, retail sales, excluding the lease or rental, of tangible personal property or digital goods shall be sourced to the location where the vendor receives an order for the sale of such property or goods if:
(a) The vendor receives the order in this state and the consumer receives the property or goods in this state;
(b) The location where the consumer receives the property or goods is determined under division (C)(2), (3), or (4) of this section; and
(c) The record-keeping system used by the vendor to calculate the tax imposed captures the location where the order is received at the time the order is received.
(2) A consumer has no additional liability to this state under this chapter or Chapter 5741. of the Revised Code for tax, penalty, or interest on a sale for which the consumer remits tax to the vendor in the amount invoiced by the vendor if the invoice amount is calculated at either the rate applicable to the location where the consumer receives the property or digital good or at the rate applicable to the location where the order is received by the vendor. A consumer may rely on a written representation by the vendor as to the location where the order for the sale was received by the vendor. If the consumer does not have a written representation by the vendor as to the location where the order was received by the vendor, the consumer may use a location indicated by a business address for the vendor that is available from records that are maintained in the ordinary course of the consumer's business to determine the rate applicable to the location where the order was received.
(3) For the purposes of division (B) of this section, the location where an order is received by or on behalf of a vendor means the physical location of the vendor or a third party such as an established outlet, office location, or automated order receipt system operated by or on behalf of the vendor, where an order is initially received by or on behalf of the vendor, and not where the order may be subsequently accepted, completed, or fulfilled. An order is received when all necessary information to determine whether the order can be accepted has been received by or on behalf of the vendor. The location from which the property or digital good is shipped shall not be used to determine the location where the order is received by the vendor.
(4) For the purposes of division (B) of this section, if services subject to taxation under this chapter or Chapter 5741. of the Revised Code are sold with tangible personal property or digital goods pursuant to a single contract or in the same transaction, the services are billed on the same billing statement or invoice, and, because of the application of division (B) of this section, the transaction would be sourced to more than one jurisdiction, the situs of the transaction shall be the location where the order is received by or on behalf of the vendor.
(C) Except for sales, other than leases, of titled motor vehicles, titled watercraft, or titled outboard motors as provided in section 5741.05 of the Revised Code, or as otherwise provided in this section and section 5739.034 of the Revised Code, all sales shall be sourced as follows:
(1) If the consumer or a donee designated by the consumer receives tangible personal property or a service at a vendor's place of business, the sale shall be sourced to that place of business.
(2) When the tangible personal property or service is not received at a vendor's place of business, the sale shall be sourced to the location known to the vendor where the consumer or the donee designated by the consumer receives the tangible personal property or service, including the location indicated by instructions for delivery to the consumer or the consumer's donee.
(3) If divisions (C)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply, the sale shall be sourced to the location indicated by an address for the consumer that is available from the vendor's business records that are maintained in the ordinary course of the vendor's business, when use of that address does not constitute bad faith.
(4) If divisions (C)(1), (2), and (3) of this section do not apply, the sale shall be sourced to the location indicated by an address for the consumer obtained during the consummation of the sale, including the address associated with the consumer's payment instrument, if no other address is available, when use of that address does not constitute bad faith.
(5) If divisions (C)(1), (2), (3), and (4) of this section do not apply, including in the circumstance where the vendor is without sufficient information to apply any of those divisions, the sale shall be sourced to the address from which tangible personal property was shipped, or from which the service was provided, disregarding any location that merely provided the electronic transfer of the property sold or service provided.
(6) As used in division (C) of this section, "receive" means taking possession of tangible personal property or making first use of a service. "Receive" does not include possession by a shipping company on behalf of a consumer.
(D)(1)(a) Notwithstanding divisions (C)(1) to (5) of this section, a business consumer that is not a holder of a direct payment permit granted under section 5739.031 of the Revised Code, that purchases a digital good, computer software, except computer software received in person by a business consumer at a vendor's place of business, or a service, and that knows at the time of purchase that such digital good, software, or service will be concurrently available for use in more than one taxing jurisdiction shall deliver to the vendor in conjunction with its purchase an exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use, or shall meet the requirements of division (D)(2) of this section. On receipt of the exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use, the vendor is relieved of its obligation to collect, pay, or remit the tax due, and the business consumer must pay the tax directly to the state.
(b) A business consumer that delivers the exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use to a vendor may use any reasonable, consistent, and uniform method of apportioning the tax due on the digital good, computer software, or service that is supported by the consumer's business records as they existed at the time of the sale. The business consumer shall report and pay the appropriate tax to each jurisdiction where concurrent use occurs. The tax due shall be calculated as if the apportioned amount of the digital good, computer software, or service had been delivered to each jurisdiction to which the sale is apportioned under this division.
(c) The exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use shall remain in effect for all future sales by the vendor to the business consumer until it is revoked in writing by the business consumer, except as to the business consumer's specific apportionment of a subsequent sale under division (D)(1)(b) of this section and the facts existing at the time of the sale.
(2) When the vendor knows that a digital good, computer software, or service sold will be concurrently available for use by the business consumer in more than one jurisdiction, but the business consumer does not provide an exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use as required by division (D)(1) of this section, the vendor may work with the business consumer to produce the correct apportionment. Governed by the principles of division (D)(1)(b) of this section, the vendor and business consumer may use any reasonable, but consistent and uniform, method of apportionment that is supported by the vendor's and business consumer's books and records as they exist at the time the sale is reported for purposes of the taxes levied under this chapter. If the business consumer certifies to the accuracy of the apportionment and the vendor accepts the certification, the vendor shall collect and remit the tax accordingly. In the absence of bad faith, the vendor is relieved of any further obligation to collect tax on any transaction where the vendor has collected tax pursuant to the information certified by the business consumer.
(3) When the vendor knows that the digital good, computer software, or service will be concurrently available for use in more than one jurisdiction, and the business consumer does not have a direct pay permit and does not provide to the vendor an exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use as required in division (D)(1) of this section, or certification pursuant to division (D)(2) of this section, the vendor shall collect and remit the tax based on division (C) of this section.
(4) Nothing in this section shall limit a person's obligation for sales or use tax to any state in which a digital good, computer software, or service is concurrently available for use, nor limit a person's ability under local, state, or federal law, to claim a credit for sales or use taxes legally due and paid to other jurisdictions.
(E) A person who holds a direct payment permit issued under section 5739.031 of the Revised Code is not required to deliver an exemption certificate claiming multiple points of use to a vendor. But such permit holder shall comply with division (D)(2) of this section in apportioning the tax due on a digital good, computer software, or a service for use in business that will be concurrently available for use in more than one taxing jurisdiction.
(F)(1)(a) Notwithstanding divisions (C)(1) to (5) of this section, the consumer of advertising and promotional direct mail or other direct mail that is not a holder of a direct payment permit may provide to the vendor in conjunction with the sale a fully completed exemption certificate claiming direct mail prescribed by the tax commissioner, or, if the direct mail is advertising and promotional direct mail, information to show the jurisdictions to which that direct mail is delivered to recipients.
(b) In the absence of bad faith, upon receipt of such an exemption certificate, the vendor is relieved of all obligations to collect, pay, or remit the applicable tax and the consumer is obligated to pay that tax on a direct pay basis. An exemption certificate claiming direct mail shall remain in effect for all future sales of direct mail by the vendor to the consumer until it is revoked in writing.
(c) Upon receipt of information from the consumer showing the jurisdictions to which advertising and promotional direct mail is delivered to recipients, the vendor shall collect the tax according to the delivery information provided by the consumer. In the absence of bad faith, the vendor is relieved of any further obligation to collect tax on any transaction where the vendor has collected tax pursuant to the delivery information provided by the consumer.
(d) If the consumer of advertising and promotional direct mail or other direct mail does not have a direct payment permit and does not provide the vendor with either an exemption certificate claiming direct mail or, if applicable, delivery information as required by division (F)(1)(a) of this section, the vendor shall collect the tax according to division (C)(5) of this section in the case of advertising and promotional direct mail or division (C)(3) of this section in the case of other direct mail. Nothing in division (F)(1)(d) of this section shall limit a consumer's obligation to pay sales or use tax to any state to which the direct mail is delivered.
(e) If a consumer of advertising and promotional direct mail or other direct mail provides the vendor with documentation of direct payment authority, the consumer shall not be required to provide an exemption certificate claiming direct mail or, if applicable, delivery information to the vendor.
(2) As used in division (F) of this section:
(a) "Direct mail" means printed material delivered or distributed by United States mail or other delivery service to a mass audience or to addressees on a mailing list provided by the consumer or at the direction of the consumer when the cost of the items are not billed directly to the recipients. "Direct mail" includes tangible personal property supplied directly or indirectly by the consumer to the direct mail vendor for inclusion in the package containing the printed material. "Direct mail" does not include multiple items of printed material delivered to a single address.
(b) "Advertising and promotional direct mail" means direct mail, the primary purpose of which is to attract public attention to a product, person, business, or organization, or to attempt to sell, popularize, or secure financial support for a product, person, business, or organization. As used in division (F)(2)(b) of this section, "product" means tangible personal property, whether transferred electronically or otherwise, or a service.
(c) "Other direct mail" means direct mail that is not advertising and promotional direct mail, regardless of whether advertising and promotional direct mail is included in the same mailing. "Other direct mail" includes all of the following:
(i) Transactional direct mail that contains personal information specific to the addressee, including invoices, bills, statements of account, and payroll advices;
(ii) Any legally required mailings, including privacy notices, tax reports, and stockholder reports;
(iii) Other nonpromotional direct mail delivered to existing or former shareholders, customers, employees, or agents, including newsletter and informational pieces.
"Other direct mail" does not include the development of billing information or the provision of any data processing service that is more than incidental.
(G) If the vendor provides lodging to transient guests as specified in division (B)(2) of section 5739.01 of the Revised Code, the sale shall be sourced to the location where the lodging is located.
(H)(1) As used in this division and division (I) of this section, "transportation equipment" means any of the following:
(a) Locomotives and railcars that are utilized for the carriage of persons or property in interstate commerce.
(b) Trucks and truck-tractors with a gross vehicle weight rating of greater than ten thousand pounds, trailers, semi-trailers, or passenger buses that are registered through the international registration plan and are operated under authority of a carrier authorized and certificated by the United States department of transportation or another federal authority to engage in the carriage of persons or property in interstate commerce.
(c) Aircraft that are operated by air carriers authorized and certificated by the United States department of transportation or another federal authority to engage in the carriage of persons or property in interstate or foreign commerce.
(d) Containers designed for use on and component parts attached to or secured on the items set forth in division (H)(1)(a), (b), or (c) of this section.
(2) A sale, lease, or rental of transportation equipment shall be sourced pursuant to division (C) of this section.
(I)(1) A lease or rental of tangible personal property that does not require recurring periodic payments shall be sourced pursuant to division (C) of this section.
(2) A lease or rental of tangible personal property that requires recurring periodic payments shall be sourced as follows:
(a) In the case of a motor vehicle, other than a motor vehicle that is transportation equipment, or an aircraft, other than an aircraft that is transportation equipment, such lease or rental shall be sourced as follows:
(i) An accelerated tax payment on a lease or rental taxed pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code shall be sourced to the primary property location at the time the lease or rental is consummated. Any subsequent taxable charges on the lease or rental shall be sourced to the primary property location for the period in which the charges are incurred.
(ii) For a lease or rental taxed pursuant to division (A)(3) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, each lease or rental installment shall be sourced to the primary property location for the period covered by the installment.
(b) In the case of a lease or rental of all other tangible personal property, other than transportation equipment, such lease or rental shall be sourced as follows:
(i) An accelerated tax payment on a lease or rental that is taxed pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code shall be sourced pursuant to division (C) of this section at the time the lease or rental is consummated. Any subsequent taxable charges on the lease or rental shall be sourced to the primary property location for the period in which the charges are incurred.
(ii) For a lease or rental that is taxed pursuant to division (A)(3) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, the initial lease or rental installment shall be sourced pursuant to division (C) of this section. Each subsequent installment shall be sourced to the primary property location for the period covered by the installment.
(3) As used in division (I) of this section, "primary property location" means an address for tangible personal property provided by the lessee or renter that is available to the lessor or owner from its records maintained in the ordinary course of business, when use of that address does not constitute bad faith.
(J) If the vendor provides a service specified in division (B)(11) of section 5739.01 of the Revised Code, the situs of the sale is the location of the enrollee for whom a medicaid health insurance corporation receives managed care premiums. Such sales shall be sourced to the locations of the enrollees in the same proportion as the managed care premiums received by the medicaid health insuring corporation on behalf of enrollees located in a particular taxing jurisdiction in Ohio as compared to all managed care premiums received by the medicaid health insuring corporation.

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