Were charges for transporting railroad crews between trains, depots, and hotels within Florida subject to sales tax?

Plain-English summary

The Florida Department of Revenue concluded that this contractor's transportation of railroad crews was not subject to sales tax.

The taxpayer moved engineers and conductors by motor vehicle between trains, depots, and hotels within Florida. The service was not offered to the general public, and no tangible personal property was sold.

The Department treated moving individuals from one point to another as a nontaxable service transaction under the cited rules.

What this means for you

Transportation contractors

Document that the charge is for transporting people and does not include a sale of tangible personal property or another specifically taxable service.

Railroad and logistics companies

Contracted crew movement was treated as passenger transportation even though it was not open to the public.

Accountants and tax professionals

Review the exact service provided. Florida generally does not tax services unless Chapter 212 specifically reaches them.

Common questions

Q: Was the service offered to the public?
A: No.

Q: Was tangible personal property sold?
A: No.

Q: Were the transportation charges taxable?
A: No.

Citations and references

• Fla. Stat. §§ 212.05(1)(i) and 213.22
• Fla. Admin. Code rr. 12A-1.005(3)(l)1. and 12A-1.071(21)

Source

• Landing page: Florida Tax Law Library
• Advisement: TAA 16A-009

Original ruling text

Executive
Director
Leon M. Biegalski

QUESTION: WHETHER TRANSPORTATION SERVICES ARE SUBJECT TO TAX?
ANSWER: TRANSPORTATIONS SERVICES ARE NOT SUBJECT TO TAX.
June 27, 2016
Re:

Technical Assistance Advisement 16A-009
Florida Sales and Use Tax – Transportation Services

Dear XXXXX:
This letter is a response to your petition received on June 1, 2016, for the Department of Revenue’s
(“Department”) issuance of a Technical Assistance Advisement ("TAA") concerning the abovereferenced petitioner and matter. Your petition has been carefully examined, and the Department
finds it to be in compliance with the requisite criteria set forth in Chapter 12-11, Florida
Administrative Code (“F.A.C.”). This response to your request constitutes a TAA and is issued to
you under the authority of Section (“s.”) 213.22, F.S.
FACTS PRESENTED
Taxpayer was awarded a contract to transport railroad crews (i.e., engineers and conductors) within
Florida. Taxpayer transports the crews via motor vehicle to and from trains, depots, and hotels.
No tangible personal property is sold. The transportation is not available to the general public.
REQUESTED ADVISEMENTS
Taxpayer requests confirmation the transportation is a service transaction, which is nontaxable.
LAW & DISCUSSION
Generally, service transactions are not subject to tax. But see s. 212.05(1)(i), Florida Statutes
(“F.S.”). A nontaxable service transaction may include the transportation of an individual from
one point to another. See, e.g., Rules 12A-1.005(3)(l)1. and 12A-1.071(21), F.A.C. Here,
Taxpayer is providing the transportation of individuals between or among different points. As
such, this transportation is considered to be a service transaction, which is nontaxable.
CONCLUSION
Taxpayer’s transportation service is not subject to tax.
Child Support Enforcement – Ann Coffin, Director  General Tax Administration – Maria Johnson, Director
Property Tax Oversight – Dr. Maurice Gogarty, Director  Information Services – Damu Kuttikrishnan, Director

www.myflorida.com/dor
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0100

Technical Assistance Advisement
Page 2
This response constitutes a Technical Assistance Advisement under s. 213.22, F.S., which is
binding on the Department only under the facts and circumstances described in the request for this
advice, as specified in s. 213.22, F.S. Our response is predicated on those facts and the specific
situation summarized above. You are advised that subsequent statutory or administrative rule
changes, or judicial interpretations of the statutes or rules, upon which this advice is based, may
subject similar future transactions to a different treatment than expressed in this response.
You are further advised that this response, your request and related backup documents are public
records under Chapter 119, F.S., and are subject to disclosure to the public under the conditions of
s. 213.22, F.S. Confidential information must be deleted before public disclosure. In an effort to
protect confidentiality, we request you provide the undersigned with an edited copy of your request
for Technical Assistance Advisement, the backup material and this response, deleting names,
addresses and any other details which might lead to identification of the taxpayer. Your response
should be received by the Department within 10 days of the date of this letter.
Sincerely,

David J. Brennan, Jr., Esq.
Senior Attorney
Technical Assistance & Dispute Resolution
Florida Department of Revenue
Record ID:

210863