Casual sales

What is a casual sale?

A casual sale is a sale of tangible personal property by a person who is not engaged in the business of selling the type of property involved.

Business and occupation tax

Business and occupation tax does not apply to casual sales.

The amount of the sale must be reported under the Retailing B&O tax classification, but a deduction may be taken on the deduction detail sheet for casual sales.

Retail sales tax

The retail sales tax must be collected on all casual sales made to consumers by a person who is engaged in a business activity.

Example

A dealership who is upgrading their computer system sells their old computer to one of its employees. The dealer is not in the business of selling computers, therefore no B&O tax is due, but the dealer must charge the employee retail sales tax on the selling price of the computer.

References

Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 82.04.040
Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 458-20-106