Tax Type
BPOL Tax
Description
In general; Auctioneer commissions
Topic
Local Power to Tax
Date Issued
01-17-1997
January 17, 1997
Re: Request for Advisory Opinion: BPOL
Dear***************
This will respond to your letter transmitted by fax on January 8, 1997 requesting an advisory opinion.
The license tax is a local tax which is imposed and administered by local officials. The Code of Virginia limits the involvement of the Department of Taxation to promulgating guidelines and issuing advisory opinions. This response is intended to provide guidance only and does not constitute a formal or binding, ruling.
FACTS
Based on previous practice, an auctioneer in the City of***** does not include commissions attributable to estate, bankruptcy liquidation, and foreclosure sales in his reported gross receipts. The City believes there is no basis for excluding these types of receipts.
DETERMINATION
There is no provision in the BPOL statute which allows the exclusion of receipts attributable to commissions earned in the types of sales listed above. These amounts should be reported as part of the auctioneer's gross receipts.
I hope that the above information will be beneficial to you. Although I believe this letter conforms with the law, it is written only for your guidance. If you have any further questions or comments, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Sincerely,
Danny M. Payne
Tax Commissioner
OTP/12034
Rulings of the Tax Commissioner