Since their introduction in California in 1993, the sales and use taxation of technology transfer agreements has been the subject of significant litigation and a seemingly endless regulation project. In the past few...more
By Geoffrey L. Gunnerson and Tony Caldwell The Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One, affirmed lower Arizona court rulings that sales of leased software in Arizona constitutes a sale of tangible personal property (TPP),...more
Information Technology Services and the Texas Sales and Use Tax - Under certain circumstances, information technology and associated services may be subject to Texas sales and use tax. The specifics depend on how the Texas...more
Software can be taxed differently under the Texas sales and use tax, depending on the rights granted to the purchaser and method of delivery. Or, at least, so says the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (or “Comptroller”...more
Software vendors and purchasers won an important victory in a decision handed down by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) this May. The SJC affirmed vendors can use the normal abatement process to apportion sales...more
On January 16, a bill (H. 756) was introduced in the Vermont Assembly that would repeal the sales and use tax exemption for remotely accessed prewritten computer software. If enacted as introduced, the exemption would no...more
On October 31, 2019, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals rejected the Wisconsin Department of Revenue’s (DOR) position in Wisconsin Department of Revenue v. Microsoft Corporation, Case No. 2018AP2024 that Microsoft should “look...more
The Alabama Supreme Court recently issued an opinion providing guidance on how computer software and related services are taxed by the State of Alabama for sales tax purposes. This is the first such opinion in this area by...more
In a recent decision, the Alabama Supreme Court held that the sale of computer software, whether "canned" or customized, is subject to Alabama sales and use tax, while confirming that separately invoiced services for custom...more
In a 5-3-1 decision, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the sale of computer software in Alabama is subject to sales or use tax, even if it’s customized in whole or in part for a particular user (see Ex parte...more
Guidance from state tax departments can be a useful resource for analyzing how a state’s tax laws apply to a specific set of facts. But with increasing frequency, tax departments are releasing guidance that seems less...more
On October 27, 2015, a three-judge panel sitting for the Michigan Court of Appeals unanimously affirmed a lower court decision finding that the use of cloud-based services in Michigan is not subject to use tax in Auto-Owners...more
In a significant rebuff of the California State Board of Equalization (BOE), the California Second District Court of Appeal held that a manufacturer’s sale of software on tangible media was exempt from sales tax under the...more
The release of software may require an export control license from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) under the Export Administration Regulations (the “EAR”). Software delivery has...more
On December 18, 2012, the California Court of Appeal ruled that receipts from the right to replicate software are sourced as sales “other than tangible personal property.” In reversing the trial court, the Court of Appeal...more