Following a recent trend in the United States, North Carolina has joined Indiana and Ohio in exempting currencies that may be used as investments from sales and use tax.
North Carolina House Bill 434 (Ch. SL 2017-181) was signed by Governor Roy Cooper on July 25, 2017. The bill, which is retroactively effective on July 1, 2017, provides that North Carolina exempts certain transactions involving the sale of “non-coin currency, investment metal bullion, and investment coins.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-164.13(69).
- Non-coin currency is defined as “forms of money and legal tender manufactured of a material other than metal under the laws of the United States or any foreign nation with a fair market value greater than any statutory or nominal value of such currency.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-164.13(69)(c).
- Investment metal bullion is defined as “any elementary precious metal that has been put through a process of smelting or refining and that is in such state or condition that its value depends upon its content and not upon its form. The term does not include fabricated precious metal that has been processed or manufactured for one or more specific and customary industrial, professional, or artistic uses.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-164.13(69)(b).
- Investment coins are defined as “numismatic coins or other forms of money and legal tender manufactured of metal under the laws of the United States or any foreign nation with a fair market value greater than any statutory or nominal value of such coins.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 105-164.13(69)(a).
Based on these rather broad definitions, consumers can expect that almost any form of legal tender may now be purchased exempt from sales tax in the state of North Carolina.
