Are Braille devices, electronic magnifiers, adapted phones, and other products that help blind and legally blind people exempt from Colorado sales and use tax?
Plain-English summary
A company that sells assistive products for blind and legally blind people — Braille note-takers and printers/embossers, screen-reading software, devices that read mail aloud, adapted mobile phones, electronic magnifiers, plus TTYs and Deaf-Blind Communicators — asked whether those products are exempt from Colorado sales and use tax. In a non-binding General Information Letter, the Department reviewed the three exemptions that could plausibly apply and made no determination, but its analysis pointed toward none of them fitting.
Colorado taxes sales of tangible personal property unless a specific exemption applies. The three candidate exemptions:
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Optical sales and services (SR-33). Corrective eyeglasses, frames sold with corrective lenses, contact lenses, and similar articles that optically correct vision are exempt (even without a prescription). But the regulation expressly excludes binoculars, telescopes, single-lens magnifying devices (a jeweler's lens, a single magnifying lens for a computer screen), cosmetic contacts, and Braille reading devices. So Braille devices and single-lens magnifiers are specifically carved out of this exemption.
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Prosthetic devices (Reg. 39-26-717.1). A prosthetic device is "an artificial part which aids or replaces a bodily function and which is designed, manufactured or adjusted to fit a particular individual." The Department observed — without deciding — that none of the listed products appears to be individually designed, manufactured, or adjusted to fit a particular person, so they likely don't qualify.
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Durable medical equipment (§ 39-26-717(2)(a)). DME must be dispensed pursuant to a prescription and must (a) withstand repeated use, (b) be primarily/customarily used for a medical purpose, (c) generally not be useful absent illness or injury, and (d) not be worn in or on the body. The Department flagged the hard question: whether Braille devices serve a "medical" purpose at all (medicine being the treatment of disease) — and noted the exemption requires a prescription regardless.
Reading the three together: the optical exemption rules out Braille devices and magnifiers by name; the prosthetic exemption needs individualized fitting these products lack; and DME needs a medical purpose plus a prescription. The Department stopped short of a ruling, but the path to exemption looks narrow.
What this means for you
Sellers of assistive technology for the blind/visually impaired
Don't assume aids for the blind are tax-exempt as "medical" or "vision" products. Colorado's optical exemption is about optically correcting vision (glasses, contacts) and specifically excludes Braille devices and single-lens magnifiers; the prosthetic and DME exemptions have requirements (individual fitting; prescription + medical purpose) that general assistive devices usually don't meet. Treat these as taxable TPP unless you can tie a specific product to a specific exemption's exact terms.
Buyers and nonprofits serving the blind community
A purchase of a Braille printer, screen reader, or electronic magnifier is likely taxable in Colorado. If a device is prescribed and arguably serves a medical purpose, the DME exemption is worth examining product-by-product — but the Department signaled skepticism.
Accountants and tax professionals
This letter is a useful map of where the visual/hearing-aid exemptions stop: SR-33 (optical) excludes Braille devices and magnifiers by name; Reg. 39-26-717.1 (prosthetic) requires individualized fitting; § 39-26-717(2)(a) (DME) requires a prescription and a medical purpose, with the "not worn on the body" and "medical purpose" prongs doing the work. Exemptions are construed narrowly.
Common questions
Q: Are Braille readers and electronic magnifiers exempt from Colorado sales tax?
A: Likely not. Colorado's optical exemption expressly excludes Braille reading devices and single-lens magnifying devices, so they generally remain taxable tangible personal property.
Q: Could these products qualify as prosthetic devices or durable medical equipment?
A: The Department doubted it. A prosthetic device must be individually designed/fitted for one person; durable medical equipment must serve a medical purpose and be bought pursuant to a prescription. General assistive devices for the blind usually meet neither set of requirements — but the Department made no final determination.
Q: Can I rely on this letter for my own sales?
A: No. It's a General Information Letter — non-binding general guidance, and the Department expressly made no determination. A private letter ruling would be needed for a binding answer on specific products.
Citations and references
Statutes and rules:
- § 39-26-104, C.R.S. (sales tax); § 39-26-202, C.R.S. (use tax)
- 1 CCR 201-5, SR-33 (Optical Sales and Services — excludes Braille devices, single-lens magnifiers)
- Reg. 39-26-717.1 (prosthetic device — individually designed/fitted)
- § 39-26-717(2)(a), C.R.S. (durable medical equipment — prescription + medical purpose)
Related rulings
- [[gil-12-002-bio-engineered-medical-device-orthotic]] — prosthetic vs. therapeutic; narrow construction
- [[gil-12-009-durable-medical-equipment]] — DME's four prongs and the prescription gate
- [[gil-15-021-medical-equipment-and-supplies]] — medical exemption boundaries
Source
- Landing page: https://tax.colorado.gov/sales-use-tax-letter-rulings
- Original PDF: https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/GIL-12-017.pdf
Original ruling text
Office of Tax Policy
P.O. Box 17087
Denver, CO 80217-0087
[email protected]
GIL-12-017
December 31, 2012
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
ATTN:XXXXXXXXXXXX
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Re: Products for the Blind and Legally Blind
Dear XXXXXXXXXXXX,
You submitted on behalf of XXXXXXXXXX ("Company") a request for guidance to
determine the applicability of Colorado sales and use tax on products used by the blind
and legally blind to assist them with daily functions.
The Colorado Department of Revenue ("Department") issues general information letters
and private letter rulings. A general information letter provides a general overview of the
relevant tax issues and is not binding on the Department. A private letter ruling provides a
specific determination for a specific set of facts, is binding on the Department but not on the
taxpayer, and requires payment of a fee. For more information about general information
letters and private letter rulings, please see Department regulation 24-35-103.5 at
www.colorado.gov/revenue/tax > Tax Library > Rulings.
The Department initially treats your request as one of a general information letter. If you
would like the Department to issue a private letter ruling on the issues you raise, you can
resubmit a request and fee in compliance with regulation 24-35-103.5. It is important to
remember that general information letters, such as this one, are general discussions of tax
law and are not a determination of the tax consequence of any particular action or inaction.
Issue
Are products to aid those who are blind and legally blind enumerated in the ruling request
subject to Colorado sales or use tax?
Background
Company sells products to help those who are blind and legally blind to read, attend
school, obtain employment and, generally, be more independent. Company's products
include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Braille note-takers that speak with or without Braille displays
2. Braille printers and embossers
3. Software for the blind and legally blind
4. Devices that read letters and mail to the blind
5. Mobile phones that are adapted for the blind
6. Electronic magnifiers that enable people who are legally blind to read
Company also sells the following devices to help those who are deaf and deaf blind.
7. TTYs
8. Deaf Blind Communicators
All of these products are herein referred to as ("Products")
Discussion
The Department does not have a regulation or publication that specifically addresses your
inquiry. The following is a general discussion of the tax issues surrounding your request.
Colorado imposes sales and use tax on the sale of tangible personal property.1 There are
three exemptions that relate to visual and hearing aids. The first exemption is for optical
sales and services.
1)
Corrective eyeglasses (including sunglasses and reading glasses), frames
sold in connection with corrective lenses, contact lenses, and similar
articles that optically correct a person's vision are exempt from sales and
use tax, regardless of whether the article was dispensed pursuant to a
prescription.
a)
Limitation on exemption.
i)
1
2
Binoculars, telescopes, a single lens magnifying device (e.g.,
a jeweler's lens, a single magnifying lens for computer
screens), contact lenses that have only a cosmetic purpose
and Braille reading devices are among articles that are not
included within this exemption.2
§§39-26-104 and 202, C.R.S.
1 CCR 201-5: SR-33, "Optical Sales and Services." You can view this Regulation on the
Department's web site at www.colorado.gov/revenue/tax > Tax Library> Rules and Regulations>
Final Tax Regulations > Sales and Use Tax > SR 33.
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The optical sales and services exemption explicitly excludes Braille reading devices.
Colorado also exempts sales of prosthetic devices. The Department defines a prosthetic
device as an artificial part which aids or replaces a bodily function and which is designed,
manufactured or adjusted to fit a particular individual.3 Although we do not decide here, it
does not appear that any of the devices you list are "designed, manufactured or adjusted to
fit a particular individual."
The third exemption under is for durable medical equipment.
(I)
"Durable medical equipment" means equipment, including repair and
replacement parts for such equipment, dispensed pursuant to a prescription,
that:
a.
b.
c.
d.
(II)
can withstand repeated use;
is primarily and customarily used to serve a medical purpose;
is generally not useful to a person in the absence of illness or injury,
is not worn in or on the body.
"Durable medical equipment" includes, but is not limited to, hospital beds,
intravenous poles and pumps, trapeze bars, toileting aids, bath and shower
aids, standing aids, adaptive car seats, communication devices, and any
related accessories for such items.4
The principal issue here is whether Braille devices serve a "medical" purpose. This
term is not defined by statute. Medicine is generally defined as the treatment of
disease.5 In turn, disease is defined as "an impairment of the normal state of the living
animal or plant body or one of its parts that interrupts or modifies the performance of
the vital functions, is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms, and is
a response to environmental factors (as malnutrition, industrial hazards, or climate), to
specific infective agents (as worms, bacteria, or viruses), to inherent defects of the
organism (as genetic anomalies), or to combinations of these factors."6 However, in
order to qualify for this exemption, the equipment must be purchased pursuant to a
prescription.
Miscellaneous
This letter represents the good faith opinion of Department personnel who are
knowledgeable on state taxes issues. However, the Department does not make a specific
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4
5
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Department Regulation 39-26-717.1. You can view this Regulation on the Department's web site at
www.colorado.gov/revenue/tax > Tax Library > Rules and Regulations > Final Tax Regulations >
Sales and Use Tax> Regulation 39-26-717.1.
§ 39-26-717(2)(a), C.R.S.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
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determination here on any of the issues raised and the Department is not bound by this
general information letter.
The Department administers state and state-administered local sales and use taxes. This
letter does not address sales and use taxes administered by home-rule cities and home
rule counties. You may wish to consult with local governments which administer their own
sales or use taxes about the applicability of those taxes. Visit our web site at
www.colorado.gov/revenue/tax for more information about state and local sales taxes.
Enclosed is a redacted version of this letter. Pursuant to statute and regulation, this
redacted letter will be made public within 60 days of the date of this letter. Please let me
know in writing within that 60 day period whether you have any suggestions or concerns
about this redacted letter.
Sincerely,
Office of Tax Policy
Colorado Department of Revenue
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