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Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8802L0867F14 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1988-02-01

Were customized financial-planning services taxable in Texas?

Short answer: No. Texas treated as nontaxable the described service of evaluating a client's present finances, identifying the client's goals, and preparing a financial plan tailored to that client.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1988. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1988
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This is a taxpayer-specific February 1988 Texas Comptroller letter. It says the opinion may change if the facts differ and cites no statute or rule. The holding is limited to the described client-specific planning service; it does not classify separately sold reports, investment products, data services, or other activities not stated in the letter. Financial-service and information-service rules may have changed; verify current law. STAR documents may no longer represent current policy even when not marked superseded. Taxpayer-identifying details are redacted. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

Plain-English summary

A financial planner evaluated each client's present financial circumstances, identified that client's goals, and prepared a financial plan tailored to achieving those goals. The Comptroller said those described services were not taxable.

What this means for you

The historical answer concerned individualized financial planning. It did not address sales of standardized information, software, investment products, or any other separately charged service.

Common questions

Were the customized financial-planning services taxable? No.

What did the planner do? Evaluated current finances, identified goals, and presented a client-specific plan.

Did the letter cite a governing statute or rule? No.

Citations and references

The letter cites no numbered statute or rule.

Source

Original ruling text

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
STATE OF TEXAS
AUSTIN, TEXAS 78774

February 1, 1988

Dear ****:

On behalf of Mr. Bullock, I hope you will accept my apology for the delay
in
answering your question concerning changes in the sales tax law. This
isn't
the way we normally do business.

Our people were, and still are, swamped by a deluge of inquiries as they
attempted to interpret provisions of the new law and draft rules which
would
not adversely impact businesses. In many instances, an answer to a
question
just wasn't available when the question arrived.

In your letter, you asked about the taxability of financial planning
services. You stated that a financial planner works with clients to
evaluate their present financial circumstances, identify the clients'
financial goals, and then present a financial plan to achieve these
goals.
The financial plans are tailored for each specific client.

These financial planning services are not taxable.

This opinion is based upon the facts you presented. If there are
additional
or different facts, this opinion may change.

Please feel free to contact me if you have additional questions. You may
write me, call toll free 1-800-531-5441 or phone 512/463-4600.

Sincerely,
Wayne McDonald
Tax Policy Division

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