New York State Tax Rulings
Free plain-English summaries of state tax letter rulings and advisory opinions issued in New York, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Can a precast-concrete maker that sells more than half its product already installed claim New York's production exemptions on its machinery and its fuel?
The machinery exemption is denied, and only part of the fuel qualifies. Midstate Precast Systems makes precast concrete 'wideslab.' Because more than 50% of its wideslab is sold on an installed basis,…
Is repaving over trenches that were cut to install new gas lines a nontaxable capital improvement, and does the paving contractor still owe tax on the materials it uses?
It's a nontaxable capital improvement — but the contractor owes tax on its materials. Technipaving Corp. repaved trenches that Long Island Lighting Company had cut and filled to install new gas lines,…
Are materials a developer's contractors buy to build and maintain buildings on land owned by a public authority (Battery Park City) exempt from sales tax when title to the materials vests immediately in the authority?
They're exempt — as long as the materials become an integral component part of the buildings or public facilities. Olympia & York Battery Park Co. would lease land at Battery Park City from the Batter…
Is a solar hot-water heating system taxable when it's installed for the property owner, when it's leased, and when it's sold uninstalled?
It depends on how it's provided. American Sunsystems asked about three ways of supplying solar hot-water heating systems. (1) Installing a system for the owner of the real property is a capital improv…
Is a contractor's charge for temporary electrical service to power a construction site until the permanent system is installed subject to sales tax?
Not taxable — it's part of a capital improvement. Industrial Power and Light Corporation installs 'temporary electrical services' (a temporary fuse box or circuit breakers, fed through a meter) to pow…
If a contractor accepts a customer's exemption certificate in good faith, can New York later recover the uncollected sales tax from the contractor?
No — a good-faith certificate protects the contractor from the uncollected tax, but two big caveats remain. Harron's Electric Service, an electrical contractor, accepted from customers, in good faith,…
Are installed wood/coal stoves, fireplace inserts, boilers and solar energy systems capital improvements that escape New York sales tax?
It depends on what's installed: free-standing stoves and inserts are taxable, while a permanently connected boiler or solar system is a capital improvement. M & C Stove World sells fireplace inserts, …
Can a monument and memorial maker buy its tools, parts and supplies tax-exempt under the manufacturing exemption, and does it matter whether it also installs the monuments?
It depends on what the monument builder mainly does. The New York State Monument Builders Association asked whether the parts, tools, equipment and supplies used to produce monuments and memorials are…
Is the sale and installation of energy-saving 'window quilts' a tax-exempt capital improvement, or is the full installed charge taxable?
Yes — the entire installed charge is taxable. David W. Sprague sells and installs 'window quilts,' custom-cut insulating window coverings attached with nails, screws or glue, with a 15-year life and e…
For an excavating contractor whose heavy equipment is both rented out and used on its own capital-improvement jobs, what is taxable — the equipment purchases, repairs, parts, and its rentals?
Mostly taxable, with capital-improvement work the exception. A. Tomassi Co., an excavating contractor, owns heavy equipment it both rents to others (about 90% of the use) and uses on its own capital-i…
Is the installation of large free-standing liquid propane storage tanks a capital improvement to real property, so the installation is exempt from sales tax?
Yes — the installation is a capital improvement and qualifies for the sales-tax exemption. Morse Chain Division of Borg-Warner had 30,000-gallon liquid propane storage tanks installed on its property.…
Are a plumbing/heating contractor's bathroom, boiler, heating-system and water-heater installations 'capital improvements' to real property for New York sales tax purposes?
Yes — all eight jobs are capital improvements. William Jiskra Plumbing and Heating Contractor asked whether eight kinds of work count as 'capital improvements' for New York sales tax: (1) adding a new…
Is installing linoleum with adhesive, or carpeting on a stairway, a tax-free capital improvement to real property?
Linoleum cemented down is always a capital improvement; carpet depends on the subfloor. S & Y Floor Covering asked whether installing linoleum with adhesive, and installing carpeting on a stairway tri…
Is building a new, independent roof over an existing roof a tax-free capital improvement to real property?
Yes — the new roof is a tax-free capital improvement. Orchard Park Veneer and Container Corporation had a new roof built over an existing structure: steel trusses spanning the old roof, supported by s…
Is a subcontractor's sale of building materials to a construction manager acting as the owner's agent exempt from sales tax on a capital-improvement project?
Exempt — a sale to the owner's agent is a sale to the owner. An attorney asked whether tangible personal property to be incorporated as an integral component of a capital-improvement construction proj…
Is roof repair and restoration work — flashing, new drains, remedial repairs, coating, and expansion joints — a tax-exempt capital improvement, or taxable repair and maintenance of real property?
It's taxable — the roof work is repair and maintenance of real property, not a capital improvement, so the contractors' charges are subject to sales tax. Fargo Manufacturing Company hired two contract…
Is a window quilt (an insulated window shade) taxable when sold, and is installing it a tax-free capital improvement?
Taxable both ways — as goods, and as an installed job. Nassau Solar Development, Inc. asked whether selling an uninstalled 'window quilt' is subject to sales tax, and whether selling one installed is …
Are charges for refinishing already-installed cabinets, including replacing cabinet doors, subject to New York sales tax?
Taxable — it's repair/maintenance, not a capital improvement. Old Craft Furniture Refinishing removes the existing finish from already-installed cabinets and applies a new finish, sometimes also selli…
Is the installed sale of a modular home a taxable sale of goods when the home sits on land leased (not owned) by the buyer?
Taxable — it's a sale of goods, not a capital improvement, because the buyer only leases the land. Greenwood Village Planned Retirement Community, Inc. sells modular homes installed on lots it owns an…
Is a company's sale and installation of a private telephone interconnect system on a customer's property a tax-exempt capital improvement, and must the installer collect a Certificate of Capital Improvement (ST-124)?
Yes — installing a private telephone interconnect system on the customer's own property is a capital improvement, so the charge is not taxed, and no ST-124 certificate is required. U.T.C. Group Inc. a…
Is the sale and installation of lockers bolted into wall alcoves a tax-exempt capital improvement, or a taxable sale and installation of tangible personal property?
The lockers are taxable — because they can be unbolted and removed without material damage, installing them is not a capital improvement, so both the sale and the installation are subject to sales tax…
When a contractor makes asphalt and uses it in its own capital-improvement road jobs, is that a 'sale' of the asphalt that qualifies the contractor for the production machinery and fuel exemptions?
No — the contractor uses (doesn't sell) the asphalt it makes for its own capital-improvement jobs, so it isn't a vendor and can't claim the machinery or fuel/utility production exemptions. Willets Poi…
Are 'start-up' charges and one-year warranty service on newly installed rooftop HVAC units subject to sales tax?
Split result — the 'start-up' is part of a nontaxable capital-improvement installation, but the later one-year warranty service is a taxable repair. Enercon Service, Inc. performs two services on roof…
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These are official tax letter rulings and advisory opinions issued by New York's revenue authority in response to questions from specific taxpayers about how the tax law applies to their facts. A ruling is binding on the department only for the taxpayer who requested it and cannot be relied on by anyone else, but it is strong evidence of how the state reads the law. Every ruling above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original source.