Dr. Tax Facts, or how I learned to stop worrying and love the WA state tax exemption

There is a lot of confusion and misinformation going around among dealers and buyers about exactly what the requirements are to qualify for the WA State Hybrid Sales Tax Exemption which is expiring Friday 7/31.

I'm taking delivery tomorrow on my III w/Nav and a post I saw worried me a bit.

So, I called the DOL and a customer service rep at the DOL suggested I call the department of revenue and gave me the number, which goes to voicemail for a guy named Joe at the dept of revenue.

I left him a vmail with my question and asked for a return call. He called me back w/in five mins. very pleasant surprise. Here's what I learned from Joe, and I reworded the question a couple of ways to make sure we weren't miscommunicating:

The phrase "registration and titling must take place during the qualifying time" means only that the dealer must submit the sale info to the DOL to start the registration/titling process before the end of business on Friday.

There are no special requirements for driving it off the lot, your temporary plate in the back window and your documentation from the sales office are what you need, just as with any normal new car purchase.

Joe said of normal non-exempt purchases, "we don't bill the buyer directly for the tax, that is charged to the dealership."

When I asked "so if the dealership doesn't get everything handled in time then the onus would be on them to cover the tax."

Joe responded "Well, I'm not a lawyer, but as long as they send in the info to the DOL on time then the sale qualifies for the exemption."

He also referred to the attached doc as being the doc for the facts on the exemption and requirements.

 

Oh Portland.

I'm starting to suspect that people who buy it out of state but live in and register it in WA might have extra hoops to jump through than those of us who are buying from dealers in WA, but i've found nothing to confirm or deny that.

More pertinent conversation, links and docs are found in another thread starting here:
http://priuschat.com/forums/dealers-pricing/66043-prius-available-in-wa-2.html

If you're taking delivery tmw or friday and you live in WA you may want to read it and weigh the info for yourself. I'll report on my own experience here tomorrow after I take delivery and do whatever seems to need doing.

 

Ok, I've got the real info here now confirmed with both my Dealership's Business Manager and Joe at the Department of Revenue in Olympia, 360.725.7327.

The requirement for taking a Declaration of Use Tax form to the DoL and getting your title applies only to WA state residents who purchased a vehicle from a dealership outside of WA state. If you're buying from an out of state dealer this is a must for you. Joe at the number above responds to voicemails very, very quickly. He'll give you his fax number and you can fax your purchase agreement and your MSO (Manufacturer's Statement of Origin) to him, he'll look it over and then fax you the Declaration of Use Tax to take to the DoL before they close on Friday.

If you live in WA state and are buying from WA state dealership which is properly registered with the state you don't need to do anything special other than take delivery of your vehicle on or before tomorrow Friday July 31st, 2009.

If you live in WA state and are buying from WA state dealership and you try to jump through the Declaration of Use Tax hoop you may actually confuse the matter and cause yourself troubles, so don't try to do that if you live in WA state and are buying from a WA state dealer.