On August 7, the Chicago Department of Finance delayed the effective date of the imposition of the Personal Property Lease Transaction Tax on cloud computing services from September 1, 2015, to January 1, 2016. However, the Department did not delay the effective date of the imposition of the Amusement Tax on streaming services. Chicago will
Illinois
Bridging the Gap: Illinois Provides Guidance on Videoconferencing Broker and Bridging Services
By Mike Kerman and Timothy Gustafson
The Illinois Department of Revenue issued a General Information Letter explaining how it will apply retailers’ occupation tax (ROT) and telecommunications excise tax (TET) to videoconferencing services. The taxpayer that sought the letter acts as a broker to match customers that need videoconferencing services with affiliates that operate videoconferencing…
Tennessee Follows Illinois and Expands Direct Placement Tax on Non-Admitted Insurance
Illinois enacted a direct placement tax on non-admitted insurance in 2014. However, there is a strong movement in Illinois to repeal or narrow the tax. Tennessee has now legislatively expanded its direct placement tax on non-admitted insurance, falling in line with many other states, including Illinois. Previously, Tennessee imposed a direct placement…
Prove It!: Illinois Cook County Circuit Court Finds That Relator Failed to Meet Burden Under the Illinois False Claims Act
By Nicole Boutros and Pilar Mata
The Illinois Cook County Circuit Court held that an Illinois law firm (the Relator) that filed a qui tam lawsuit against a taxpayer failed to meet its burden to prove the taxpayer knowingly failed to collect and remit Illinois use tax, as required under the Illinois False Claims Act.
A Pinch of SALT: State Taxpayer Bills of Rights Have Teeth
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Illinois Allows Intermediate Carrier to Source International Telecommunications Receipts Based on Its Property Factor
By Derek Takehara and Andrew Appleby
The Illinois Department of Revenue determined that a wholesale distributor of international telecommunications services could source its long-distance telephone receipts based on its Illinois property factor. The taxpayer, an intermediate international telecommunications carrier, owned and rented equipment in several states, including Illinois. Illinois law provides that a taxpayer must…
Signed, Sealed, Delivered, They’re Ours: Illinois Sources Cloud Computing Receipts Using Market-Based Approach
By Sahang-Hee Hahn and Pilar Mata
The Illinois Department of Revenue determined that a taxpayer’s cloud computing receipts should be sourced for sales factor purposes using a market-based approach because the receipts were derived from services. The taxpayer was an information technology hosting services provider engaged in a business that focused on the delivery and…
Even the Department Has to Follow Its Own Regulations: Illinois Local Sales Tax Sourcing Regulations Invalidated, But Taxpayer Who Relied on Them Cannot Be Taxed
By Madison Barnett and Jonathan Feldman
The Illinois Supreme Court held that Illinois’ local Retailers’ Occupation Tax (ROT) sourcing regulations—which applied a bright-line test to assign sales to the location where the purchase order was accepted—were not supported by the controlling tax imposition statutes and thus were invalid. The taxpayer, like many others in Illinois, established…
Be Careful What You Ask For: Illinois Grants Request for Alternative Apportionment
By Todd Betor and Andrew Appleby
The Illinois Department of Revenue granted a taxpayer’s request to use an alternative apportionment method, determining that application of the standard single sales factor formula did not fairly represent the market for the taxpayer’s goods, services or other sources of income. The taxpayer’s only sale during the year in…
Legal Alert: Illinois Click-Through Nexus Law Preempted by the Internet Tax Freedom Act
In a 6-1 decision, the Illinois Supreme Court affirmed an Illinois Circuit Court holding that Illinois Public Act 96-1544 (The Click-Through Nexus Act), requiring out-of-state retailers to collect and remit use tax, violates the Internet Tax Freedom Act. Performance Marketing Ass’n v. Hamer, Docket No. 114496 (Oct. 18, 2013).
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