When is South Carolina's 2009 sales tax holiday and what is exempt (per SC IL #09-9)?

Plain-English summary

South Carolina's 2009 sales tax holiday runs from Friday, August 7, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. through Sunday, August 9, 2009 at midnight. S.C. Code § 12-36-2120(57) provides an annual sales tax holiday that starts at 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in August and ends at midnight the following Sunday.

During the holiday weekend, the state and local sales and use tax is not imposed on a defined list of back-to-school-type items, including clothing and clothing accessories, footwear, school supplies, computers, printers and printer supplies, computer software, and certain bed and bath items. It does not apply to items such as jewelry, cosmetics, eyewear, furniture, rentals of clothing or footwear, or items purchased for use in a business or trade.

The letter points to two companion advisory opinions for the detail — SC Revenue Ruling #05-9 (examples of exempt and nonexempt items) and SC Revenue Ruling #05-10 (a question-and-answer document) — and notes that South Carolina also has two other sales tax holidays: the Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday and the Energy Star Sales Tax Holiday.

What this means for you

If you are a shopper

Buy qualifying clothing, school supplies, computers, and listed bed-and-bath items between 12:01 a.m. Friday, August 7 and midnight Sunday, August 9, 2009 to avoid sales tax on those items.

If you are a retailer

Program the exemption for the exact weekend and item categories, and use SC Revenue Rulings #05-9 and #05-10 to resolve edge cases about which specific products qualify.

Common questions

Q: What are the exact dates and times of the 2009 holiday?
A: From 12:01 a.m. Friday, August 7, 2009 through midnight Sunday, August 9, 2009.

Q: What is exempt?
A: Clothing, clothing accessories, footwear, school supplies, computers, printers and printer supplies, computer software, and certain bed and bath items.

Q: Does South Carolina have other sales tax holidays?
A: Yes — the letter notes the Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday and the Energy Star Sales Tax Holiday as two separate holidays.

Subject

Sales Tax Holiday for August 2009

Source

• Landing page: https://dor.sc.gov/advisory-opinion-search
• Original PDF: https://dor.sc.gov/sites/dor/files/policies/IL09-9.pdf

Original ruling text

State of South Carolina

Department of Revenue
301 Gervais Street, P. O. Box 125, Columbia, South Carolina 29214
Website Address: http://www.sctax.org

SC INFORMATION LETTER #09-9

SUBJECT:

Sales Tax Holiday for August 2009

DATE:

June 2, 2009

SUPERSEDES:

All previous advisory opinions and any oral directives in
conflict herewith.

AUTHORITY:

S. C. Code Ann. Section 12-4-320 (2000; Supp. 2008)
SC Revenue Procedure #09-3

SCOPE:

An Information Letter is a written statement issued to the public
to announce general information useful in complying with the
laws administered by the Department. An Information Letter
has no precedential value.

Code Section 12-36-2120(57) provides for an annual sales tax holiday for sales taking
place during 12:01 a.m. on the first Friday in August and ending at midnight on the
following Sunday. Accordingly, the 2009 sales tax holiday weekend will begin Friday,
August 7, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. and end Sunday, August 9, 2009 at midnight.
During this time, the 6% state sales and use tax, and any applicable local sales and use
tax, will not be imposed on clothing, clothing accessories (e.g., hats, scarves, hosiery, and
handbags), footwear, school supplies (e.g., pens, pencils, paper, binders, notebooks,
books, bookbags, lunchboxes, and calculators), computers, printers and printer supplies,
computer software, and bath wash clothes, blankets, bed spreads, bed linens, sheet sets,
comforter sets, bath towels, shower curtains, bath rugs and mats, pillows, and pillow
cases. The sales tax holiday, however, does not apply to sales of jewelry, cosmetics,
eyewear, wallets, watches, furniture, rental of clothing or footwear, items for use in a
business, or items placed on layaway or similar deferred payment and delivery plans.
The Department has published two advisory opinions concerning the sales tax holiday;
each is available on our website at www.sctax.org. These documents are:

1. SC Revenue Ruling #05-9 – a detailed list of examples of exempt items during the
   sales tax holiday and a list of examples of nonexempt items.
2. SC Revenue Ruling #05-10 – a “question and answer” document addressing
   frequently asked sales tax holiday questions.

1

Note: On May 4, 2009, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that the act authorizing
two other sales tax holidays, the Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday and the Energy
Star Sales Tax Holiday, was unconstitutional.1 As such, these two sales tax holidays were
eliminated.
However, the General Assembly subsequently included a Second Amendment Sales Tax
Holiday in the 2009 – 2010 State Appropriations Act (House Bill 3560 of 2009, Part 1B,
Section 89, Proviso 89.135). This two-day sales tax holiday applies to purchases of
handguns (as defined in Code Section 16-23-10(1)), rifles and shotguns and will take
place on the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving - November 27th and 28th of 2009.
The Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday was enacted as a temporary proviso;
therefore, it will not take place in subsequent years unless the General Assembly reenacts the temporary proviso or codifies this sales tax holiday exemption.

1

The American Petroleum Institute and BP Products North America Inc v. South Carolina Department of
Revenue, et al. (Opinion No. 26645, May 4, 2009).

2