Ezel / Tax Rulings / CA

Were charges to emboss a customer's name on milk or ice cream cans taxable?

Short answer Charges for new cans were taxable fabrication; embossing customer-furnished used cans was not taxable, but the embosser consumed its materials.
State
CA
Ruling
Annotation 315.0500
Tax type
Sales and Use Tax
Issued
1950-01-26
Issued by
California State Board of Equalization
Requested by
A business embossing customers' names on milk and ice cream cans
Topics
embossing new property used property fabrication
Source
View Original PDF

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1950. Ask about yours and see what current California tax law says, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1950
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This 1950 opinion applied historical Ruling 15 and distinguished embossing new cans from customer-furnished used cans. For used cans, the embosser consumed the materials and had to report their cost if acquired tax free for resale. Current embossing, new-versus-used-property, fabrication, repair, materials, and self-use rules control today.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.
View original ruling (PDF)

Plain-English summary

California treated embossing a consumer's name on a new milk or ice cream can as a step in producing or fabricating the can. The embossing charge was taxable.

Embossing a customer-furnished used can was not taxable. The embosser instead consumed the materials used for that work and had to report their cost as self-consumed merchandise if it had bought them tax free for resale.

Common questions

Was embossing a new can taxable?

Yes.

Was embossing a customer-furnished used can taxable?

No.

Who consumed the embossing materials on used cans?

The embosser.

Citations and references

  • Historical Sales and Use Tax Ruling 15

Source

Original ruling text

315.0500

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION

January 26, 1950

J. F. R--XXXX --- Rd.
--- --- XX, Calif.

  • XXXXXX
    File destroyed 7-62

Gentlemen:
This is in answer to your letter of January 20 with respect to the application of the state sales tax to your charges for embossing a consumer’s name on milk and ice cream cans. It is our opinion that the embossing of a consumer’s name on a new milk or ice cream can is a step in the production or fabricating of the milk or ice cream can, within the meaning of Sales and Use Tax Ruling 15, copy enclosed. Accordingly, we regard your charges for embossing new cans as subject to tax. Where the embossing is on used cans furnished by your customer, we do not regard the tax as applicable. You will be regarded as the consumer of the materials used in embossing the used cans. Accordingly, if the materials so used have been purchased on a tax-free basis for the purpose of resale, you should include the cost price of the materials which you used in embossing used cans at line two of your sales and use tax return, as self-consumed merchandise. Very truly yours,

R. G. Hamlin
Associate Tax Counsel

RGH:hb

cc:

Burnett Sheehan
FABRICATION, ETC.
“Embossing”

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