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Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 9411L1321D01 Motor Vehicle Tax 1994-11-09

Was an airport access fee taxable when a vehicle rental company passed it through to customers?

Short answer: Yes. Whether characterized as a fee or tax charged by the airport, it was the rental company's expense. When passed to the customer, it became part of taxable rental receipts even if separately stated.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1994. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1994
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 an official Texas Tax Administration letter issued on one 1994 regional-airport fee structure. It predates modern Private Letter Ruling reliance terms and cannot be treated by unrelated taxpayers as binding protection. Airport concession charges, pass-through fees, separate-statement treatment, and rental-tax definitions may have changed. 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

The Texas Tax Administration Division said a regional airport's access fee was an expense of the motor vehicle rental company.

When the rental company passed that expense to the customer, the amount became part of taxable rental receipts. The result was the same whether the charge was separately stated or included in one bundled amount.

What this means for you

Vehicle rental companies and airport concessionaires

Separately stating a pass-through business expense did not remove it from the historical rental tax base.

Rental fleet accountants

The letter focused on whose expense the charge was, not whether the airport called it a fee or tax.

Common questions

Q: Was the passed-through airport fee taxable?

A: Yes.

Q: Did separate statement change the result?

A: No.

Citations and references

  • The letter did not identify a statute or administrative rule by number.

Source

Original ruling text

November 9,1994

Dear**:

Thank you for your letter concerning the taxability of the "airport access fee"
for motor vehicle rental tax purposes.

It my understanding that the regional airport charges a "airport access fee" to
motor vehicle rental companies who's office and/or vehicles are not located at
the airport. The fee is imposed on the rental firm. The rental company
directly passes the fee on to it's customers.

Whether the "airport access fee" is a tax or fee charged by the airport, it is
an expense of the rental company and when passed on to the customer is part of
the taxable rental receipts. The fee is taxable whether separately stated to
the customer or included in a single charge.

This opinion is based on the facts submitted. Other facts, though similar, may
yield different results.

If you have any question please call one our representatives toll free at
1-800-252-1382 or write to the Tax Administration Division.

Sincerely,

Curt Swenson
Tax Administration Division

NOTE: Previous Accession Number 9411694L

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