A motor vehicle is a car, bus, truck, motor home, or on-highway motorcycle that is required to be registered for use on public roads. Vehicles such as snowmobiles, boats, ATVs, and motorcycles intended for off-road use are not considered motor vehicles for Idaho sales tax purposes. (This definition is specific to sales/use tax. Other tax types may have a different definition).

If you buy a vehicle from an Idaho dealer, the dealer collects sales tax when the sale occurs. If you buy the vehicle from an individual, you pay the sales tax when you title and register your vehicle at your local Department of Motor Vehicles. To register a vehicle purchased from a retailer who is not a dealer (such as a furniture store, pizza delivery restaurant, etc.), you must have proof that you already paid the sales tax.

A bill of sale should have the date, vehicle identification number (VIN), name of buyer, name of seller, and full amount paid for the motor vehicle. A bill of sale can be challenged if the purchase price is very low for the type of vehicle purchased.

No. A gift isn't subject to sales tax because you didn't buy it. However, you must complete an Idaho Sales Tax Exemption Certificate, Form ST-133, Section II, and give the completed form to the clerk when you title and register the vehicle.

If the seller is your parent, grandparent, or sibling and already paid sales tax on the truck when it was purchased, you don't have to pay sales tax when you buy it. However, you must complete a family sale exemption certificate. (The exemption also applies if the seller is a step-relative still related to you by marriage. But, it doesn't apply if the seller is a cousin, aunt, uncle, or foster child.) To claim the family sale exemption, you must fill out Idaho Sales Tax Exemption Certificate, Form ST-133, Section I, and give the completed form to the clerk when you title and register the vehicle.

No. You don't have to pay sales tax on something you inherited because you didn't buy it. However, you must give a copy of the will, court order, or inheritance affidavits to the clerk when you title and register the vehicle.

Yes, unless some other exemption applies to your purchase.

Yes. You've given your neighbor something of value (your work) in exchange for the vehicle, which is called bartering. Therefore, through bartering you've purchased the car and must pay sales tax on its value. Additionally, through bartering you've also been paid (with the car) for the work you did for your neighbor. Therefore, you must pay income tax on the value of the car, which you received for the services you provided.

It depends. If you're buying the vehicle from a dealer, the dealer collects sales tax on the amount you actually paid, no matter how low. However, if you buy the vehicle from an individual, you pay use tax on the full value of the vehicle when you title and register it. The price shown on the bill of sale is normally considered the motor vehicle's full value. But, if that sale price seems unrealistic, the county is authorized to use the average retail price shown in the most recent N.A.D.A. Official Used Car Guide to compute the tax you must pay when you register your vehicle.

A nonresident who buys a vehicle from a dealer owes sales tax on the vehicle if it stays in Idaho more than 60 days in a 12-month period. This applies to nonresident members of the military as well. However, nonresidents who will take the vehicle to another state or country and immediately license and title it there can buy the vehicle without paying sales tax if they properly complete a Form ST-104MV.

You can qualify for an exemption at the time of sale only if you provide a copy of military orders that show you must report to a duty station in another state within 60 days.

If it's registered in another state, and you've already paid sales taxes on it, you don't have to pay Idaho sales tax. However, if your car is registered in a state that doesn't have sales tax (Oregon, Alaska, Montana, New Hampshire, or Delaware), and you haven't paid tax on the purchase of the vehicle, you must pay Idaho's tax unless you bought the car more than three months before you moved to Idaho. To claim this exemption, you must fill out Idaho State Tax Commission Three-Month Exemption Claim Form ST-102 and give the completed form to the clerk when you title and register the vehicle.

Yes. You're an Idaho resident until you've taken all the steps to complete a change in permanent residence..

Auctioneers in Idaho are retailers and must collect sales tax on the full sales price when they sell a motor vehicle. If you buy a vehicle outside of Idaho and the auctioneer doesn't collect sales tax, you owe a use tax based on the bill of sale when you title and register the vehicle..

No. You don't have to pay sales tax because you didn't buy the car. However, you must fill out Idaho Sales Tax Exemption Certificate, Form ST-133, Section II, and give the completed form to the clerk when you title and register the car. The organization (car dealership, radio station, corporation, etc.) that gives the vehicle away as a prize must pay the Idaho sales tax. Additionally, prizes are subject to income tax and will be added to your taxable income. Therefore, you must pay income tax on the value of the car you won.

Fair market value is the price a motor vehicle would sell for on the open market. The Tax Commission accepts the retail values in the N.A.D.A. Official Used Car Guide as the fair market value.

A fraud penalty is payment of an additional 50 percent of the sales tax due on a motor vehicle. We'll impose a fraud penalty if we determine that the buyer of the vehicle meant to avoid paying the sales tax. Ref: Idaho Code section 63-3046(b).