NE 01-99-5 Sales and Use Tax 1999-12-06

Is mobility enhancing equipment installed on a motor vehicle — hand controls, van lifts — exempt from Nebraska sales tax?

Short answer: Yes, with a prescription. Under Revenue Ruling 01-99-5 and Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-2704.09, mobility enhancing equipment installed on a motor vehicle to make it suitable for a disabled or handicapped person — hand controls, low-effort brake or steering, drop floors, raised roofs, power door openers, van lifts, power transfer seats, wheel chair tie downs, and air kneel suspension — is exempt from sales and use tax when purchased on or after October 1, 1999 pursuant to a Nebraska-licensed physician's prescription. It does not include equipment normally provided by the manufacturer (power steering, power brakes, automatic transmissions, door locks, running boards, telephones). To buy a vehicle with the equipment already installed, give the seller a Nebraska Certificate of Exemption for Mobility Enhancing Equipment on a Motor Vehicle (Form 13ME) plus the prescription; for equipment bought separately, give a Form 13 with the prescription attached. Repair parts and maintenance agreements are similarly exempt with documentation, but a single maintenance charge covering both the vehicle and the equipment is taxable. Tax paid can be refunded on Form 7.

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This page answers the general question as of 1999. Ezel answers yours, under current Nebraska tax law, with citations.

Disclaimer: This is an official Revenue Ruling of the Nebraska Department of Revenue, a guidance document stating the Department's interpretation of how Nebraska tax law applies. Each Nebraska guidance document carries the notice that it 'is advisory in nature but is binding on the Nebraska Department of Revenue until amended.' Unlike a private letter ruling, a Revenue Ruling is a general statement of Department policy rather than advice to a single taxpayer, but it can be amended, superseded, or made obsolete by a later ruling or a change in statute or regulation, many rulings in this series have been rescinded or superseded, so confirm it is still in effect before relying on it. Nebraska's local option sales and use taxes are administered by the Department, not self-collected by home-rule cities. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Nebraska tax professional about your situation.

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.

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Plain-English summary

This ruling is the motor-vehicle companion to Nebraska's home mobility-equipment exemption. It explains when equipment added to a vehicle so a disabled or handicapped person can use it is exempt from sales and use tax.

The exemption. Under Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-2704.09, mobility enhancing equipment for use on a motor vehicle, purchased on and after October 1, 1999 pursuant to a prescription from a Nebraska-licensed physician, is exempt from sales and use tax.

What qualifies. Equipment installed on a motor vehicle to make it suitable for use by a disabled or handicapped person — the ruling lists transfer of controls, accelerator and brake hand controls, sensitized or low-effort brakes, sensitized or low-effort steering, drop floors, raised roof, power door openers, van lifts, power transfer seats, wheel chair tie downs, and air kneel suspension. Equipment bought for a dependent (generally a family member) who could have bought it themselves is also exempt.

What does not qualify. Any motor vehicle, or equipment normally provided by the manufacturer — for example power steering, power brakes, automatic transmissions, automatic door locks, running boards, and telephones.

How to claim it — two paths:

Buying a vehicle with the equipment already installed: give the seller a Nebraska Certificate of Exemption for Mobility Enhancing Equipment on a Motor Vehicle, Form 13ME, and a copy of the prescription.
Buying the equipment separately from the vehicle: give the seller a Nebraska Resale or Exempt Sale Certificate, Form 13, with the prescription attached.

Repairs and maintenance agreements. Repair and maintenance parts for the equipment are exempt if the owner gives the repairperson the prescription and either a completed Form 13 (Section B) or Form 13ME. A maintenance agreement covering the equipment is likewise exempt with that documentation — but if there is a single charge covering both the vehicle and the mobility equipment, the whole maintenance charge is taxable.

Refunds and institutions. Tax paid on qualifying equipment on or after October 1, 1999 can be refunded via a Claim for Overpayment of Sales and Use Tax, Form 7, with the prescription. Equipment bought by a nursing home, hospital, or other organization is not exempt unless the organization itself holds a valid Nebraska certificate of exemption.

What this means for you

A disabled driver or family caregiver

Hand controls, a van lift, a raised roof, and similar adaptations prescribed by a Nebraska-licensed physician can be bought tax-free. If they're already on a vehicle you're buying, use Form 13ME; if you're buying the equipment on its own, use Form 13 — both need a copy of the prescription.

A dealer or vehicle-conversion shop

Accept the correct certificate for the transaction (Form 13ME for a vehicle with equipment already installed, Form 13 for standalone equipment) plus the prescription. Watch the maintenance-agreement rule: a single combined charge for the vehicle and the adaptive equipment is fully taxable.

Common questions

Q: Are hand controls and van lifts really tax-free?
A: Yes, when installed to make a vehicle suitable for a disabled or handicapped person and purchased with a Nebraska physician's prescription on or after October 1, 1999.

Q: What paperwork do I use?
A: Form 13ME if the equipment is already installed on a vehicle you're buying; Form 13 if you're buying the equipment separately — both with the prescription.

Q: Is a service contract on the equipment taxable?
A: Not if it covers only the equipment and you provide the prescription and Form 13/13ME — but a single charge covering both the vehicle and the equipment is taxable.

Citations and references

Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-2704.09 — exempts prescribed mobility enhancing equipment for a disabled or handicapped person, effective for purchases on and after October 1, 1999.
Form 13ME (Certificate of Exemption for Mobility Enhancing Equipment on a Motor Vehicle) — used when buying a vehicle with the equipment already installed.
Form 13 (Nebraska Resale or Exempt Sale Certificate) — used when buying the equipment separately, with the prescription attached.
Form 7 (Claim for Overpayment of Sales and Use Tax) — used to recover tax paid on qualifying equipment.

Source

Original ruling text

REVENUE RULING 1-99-5
December 6, 1999
Sales and Use Tax - Mobility Enhancing Equipment for Use on a Motor Vehicle. MOBILITY
ENHANCING EQUIPMENT FOR USE ON A MOTOR VEHICLE PURCHASED PURSUANT
TO A PRESCRIPTION ISSUED BY A NEBRASKA-LICENSED PHYSICIAN IS EXEMPT
FROM SALES AND USE TAX.
Advice has been requested whether the purchase of mobility enhancing equipment on and after
October 1, 1999, for use on a motor vehicle is subject to sales tax.
Mobility enhancing equipment is equipment installed on a motor vehicle to make the motor vehicle
suitable for use by a disabled or handicapped person. Mobility enhancing equipment appropriate
for use on a motor vehicle includes items such as transfer of controls, accelerator and brake hand
controls, sensitized or low effort brake, sensitized or low effort steering, drop ﬂoors, raised roof,
power door openers, van lifts, power transfer seats, wheel chair tie downs, and air kneel suspension
(adjustable shock absorbers and compressor which lower the van to within inches of the ground).
Mobility enhancing equipment does not include any motor vehicle or equipment on a motor vehicle
normally provided by a motor vehicle manufacturer. Examples of items that are not mobility
enhancing equipment are power steering, power brakes, automatic transmissions, automatic door
locks, running boards, and telephones.
Pursuant to Nebraska Revised Statute section 77-2704.09, mobility enhancing equipment purchased
by any disabled or handicapped person who is required to use durable medical equipment,
orthotics, or prosthetics for locomotion and which is purchased pursuant to a prescription issued by
a Nebraska-licensed physician is exempt from sales and use tax when the following procedures are
followed. (Mobility enhancing equipment that is purchased to meet the needs of a dependent who
could have purchased the mobility enhancing equipment themselves is also exempt. A dependent
is generally a family member and may include a parent, spouse, son, or daughter.)
If the purchaser is purchasing a motor vehicle with mobility enhancing equipment already installed,
the purchaser must issue to the seller a Nebraska Certiﬁcate of Exemption for Mobility Enhancing
Equipment on a Motor Vehicle, Form 13ME, and a copy of the prescription issued by a Nebraskalicensed physician.
Disabled or handicapped persons who purchase mobility enhancing equipment separate from a
motor vehicle must issue to the seller a Nebraska Resale or Exempt Sale Certiﬁcate, Form 13. The
prescription issued by a Nebraska-licensed physician must be attached to the Form 13.
The purchase of repair and maintenance parts for mobility enhancing equipment on a motor vehicle
is exempt from sales and use tax provided the owner of the vehicle gives the repairperson a copy of
the prescription issued by a Nebraska-licensed physician and either a completed Form 13, Section
B, or Form 13ME.
The purchase of a maintenance agreement that covers mobility enhancing equipment on a motor
vehicle is exempt from sales and use tax provided the purchaser gives the seller a copy of the

Nebraska Department of Revenue, P.O. Box 94818, Lincoln, Nebraska 68509-4818

Revenue Ruling 1-99-5

December 6, 1999

Page 2 of 2

prescription issued by a Nebraska-licensed physician and either a completed Form 13, Section B,
or Form 13ME. If there is a single charge for a maintenance agreement that covers both the vehicle
and mobility enhancing equipment, the charge for the maintenance agreement is taxable.
Any disabled or handicapped person who pays sales tax on mobility enhancing equipment purchased
on or after October 1, 1999, may obtain a refund of the tax by ﬁling a Claim for Overpayment of
Sales and Use Tax, Form 7, with the Nebraska Department of Revenue. Documentation including
a copy of the prescription issued by a Nebraska-licensed physician must be ﬁled with the claim.
Mobility enhancing equipment that is purchased by a nursing home, hospital, or other organization
is not exempt from sales and use tax unless the organization itself is exempt from sales and use tax
and holds a valid certiﬁcate of exemption issued by the Nebraska Department of Revenue.
APPROVED:

Mary Jane Egr
State Tax Commissioner
December 6, 1999

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