Investment casting

Investment casting is a foundry process where a mold (or investment) is made by applying multiple layers of ceramic material to a wax shell. Once the ceramic hardens, the mold is heated to melt and drain the wax, leaving behind a hollow ceramic shell.

Retail sales and use tax do not apply to either of the following when they are for use in industrial applications:

• Wax and ceramic materials used to create molds and consumed in the process of creating ferrous and nonferrous investment castings.
• Labor and services to create wax patterns or ceramic shells used as molds and consumed in the process of creating ferrous and nonferrous investment castings.

Documentation and reporting

To claim the exemption, the buyer must give the seller a completed Buyer’s Retail Sales Tax Exemption Certificate. If the seller did not charge sales tax, the buyer does not have to report use tax. However, in either case, buyers must complete the Buyer’s Sales and Use Tax Preferences Addendum when filing their excise tax returns.

Sellers will report sales of these items under both the Retailing business and occupation (B&O) and the Retail Sales tax classifications. They will then use the ‘Other’ deduction with a description such as “Investment casting materials.”