Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8805L0891C13 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1988-05-03

Were school pictures sold to students exempt from Texas sales tax when the photographer sold them directly or through the school?

Short answer: No. School-picture sales to students were taxable whether made by the photographer or through the school, because the students—not the school—were making the purchases.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1988. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1988
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 is an official 1988 Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts letter published on the State Tax Automated Research (STAR) system. It addresses the specific school-picture sales described and should not be assumed to state current treatment without verification. Letters on STAR can be the basis of a detrimental reliance claim only for the taxpayer to whom the letter was directly issued (see 34 Tex. Admin. Code Rules 3.1 and 3.10); documents on STAR may no longer represent current policy even if not marked superseded. Taxpayer-identifying details are redacted. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Texas tax professional about your specific 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) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

Plain-English summary

The Comptroller said there was no sales-tax exemption for school pictures sold to students.

The sale was taxable whether the photographer sold the pictures directly or made the sales through the school. The reason given was that the students, not the school, were making the purchases.

What this means for you

Using a school as the sales channel did not turn the students' picture purchases into exempt school purchases under this letter.

Common questions

Were school pictures sold to students taxable? Yes.

Did it matter whether the photographer or school handled the sale? No. The sale remained taxable either way.

Was the school treated as the purchaser? No.

Citations and references

The letter stated that no exemption applied but did not cite a rule or statute by number.

Source

Original ruling text

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
STATE OF TEXAS
AUSTIN,78774

May 3, 1988

Dear ***:

Thank you for your letter requesting taxability of certain products in
your
client's business.

There is no sales tax exemption for the sale of school pictures to school
students. Whether the sale is made by the photographer or through the
school the sale of school pictures to students is taxable. In this case
the
school is not making the purchase.

This opinion is based on the facts presented. If there are additional or
different facts, the opinion may change.

If you have any questions or need more information, please call our
toll-free
number 1-800-531-5441. The regular number is 512/463-4600. You may
write me
at the Tax Policy Division.

Sincerely,
Curt Swenson
Tax Policy Division

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