N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 20 § 528.6

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 25, June 18, 2024

Section 528.6 - Newspapers and periodicals

Tax Law, § 1115[a][5]

(a)Exemption.

The sale of newspapers and periodicals is exempt from sales and compensating use tax.

(b)Definition of newspaper.

(1) In order to constitute a newspaper, a publication must conform generally to the following requirements:

(i) it must be published in printed or written form at stated short intervals, usually daily or weekly;

(ii) it must not, either singly or, when successive issues are put together, constitute a book;

(iii) it must be available for circulation to the public; and

(iv) it must contain matters of general interest and reports of current events.

(2) Notwithstanding the fact that a publication may be devoted primarily to matters of specialized interest, such as legal, mercantile, financial, theatrical, political, religious or sporting matters, nevertheless, if, in addition to the special interest it serves, the publication contains general news, it is entitled to the classification of a newspaper.

Example 1:

A Braille edition of a newspaper is exempt.

Example 2:

A publication distributed free of charge is not excluded from qualifying as a newspaper.

Example 3:

A daily publication which consists of entries and selections at various race tracks with articles on matters of general interest and reports of current events is a newspaper. However, publications which are merely tip sheets or form sheets are subject to tax.

Example 4:

A microfilm copy of a newspaper is not a newspaper and the sale of such microfilm is the sale of tangible personal property subject to tax.

Example 5:

An individual engaged in the business of clipping and selling newspaper articles is not selling newspapers but is selling an information service which is subject to tax. See section 527.3 of this Chapter.

(c)Definition of a periodical.

(1) In order to constitute a periodical, a publication must conform generally to the following requirements:

(i) it must be published in printed or written form at stated intervals, at least as frequently as four times a year;

(ii) it must not, either singly or, when successive issues are put together, constitute a book;

(iii) it must be available for circulation to the public;

(iv) it must have continuity as to title and general nature of content from issue to issue; and

(v) each issue must contain a variety of articles by different authors devoted to literature, the sciences or the arts, news, some special industry, profession, sport or other field of endeavor.

(2) A publication which may be known as or considered to be a newsletter may qualify as a periodical if it conforms to the above standards. Where a newsletter has no signed articles, but has a staff of writers who originally prepare articles, such publication will be considered to have articles by different authors. If a publication has been classified by the United States Postal Service as one which is entitled to second class mailing privileges, that fact will be considered in determining whether or not the publication is a periodical.

(3) Nothing in this section shall be construed to exempt as a periodical the following:

(i) advertising material, such as catalogs, flyers, pamphlets and brochures;

(ii) listings and compilations which constitute information services;

(iii) publications which are issued at stated intervals but which are books or parts of a book.

Example 1:

Comic books, published serially under the same title at least once quarterly, are exempt as periodicals.

Example 2:

A weekly publication which consists of television programming schedules and contains several articles on matters of general interest by various authors is a periodical.

Example 3:

Single-issue publications that bear no relationship to prior or subsequent issues with respect to continuity of literary character, subject matter, style, and format are subject to tax as books.

Example 4:

A publication is sold by subscription only, to individuals involved in a particular industry, with the publisher reserving the right to refuse to accept a subscription. This publication is not a periodical as it is not available for circulation to the general public.

Example 5:

A weekly publication which contains articles about the business and its employees is distributed solely to employees of a particular company. This publication is not a periodical.

Example 6:

A publisher compiles information concerning corporate securities and publishes the results in a series of publications issued biweekly. The publications are intended to comprise a complete reference book or manual at the end of the year. The publications are not periodicals but constitute a taxable information service.

Example 7:

A company publishes and distributes weekly and daily reports on corporations, corporate securities, and bonds. The publications are not periodicals and constitute a taxable information service.

Example 8:

A weekly newsletter is comprised of four pages of various articles devoted to the automobile industry. Although the articles are not signed, they are prepared by an editorial staff. The publication is sold by subscription and single copies are also available. The newsletter contains no advertising. This newsletter constitutes a periodical.

Example 9:

A store issues catalogs monthly describing merchandise offered for sale. Such catalogs are not periodicals.

Example 10:

A company publishes and distributes a crossword puzzle magazine monthly. This magazine qualifies as a periodical.

Example 11:

Advance sheets of court reports are not periodicals.

Example 12:

Tape recordings of materials extracted from medical journals are distributed twice each month to subscribers. The recordings are not periodicals and their sale is the sale of tangible personal property subject to tax.

(4) A publication which was originally a periodical but which is sold at a price which does not reflect its normal retail selling price shall be deemed to be sold as tangible personal property for collection or investment purposes and not as a periodical.

Example 13:

A periodical, which is not a current issue, is ordered from the publisher. The publisher charges the customer a $1 service charge in addition to the selling price of the periodical. The total selling price is exempt.

Example 14:

An individual purchases a rare periodical, which originally sold at $1 an issue, at a price of $25. The price of $25 is subject to tax.

(d) Shopping papers or pennysavers.

[Tax Law, § 1115(i)]

(1) The term shopping paper shall mean those community publications variously known as consumer papers, pennysavers, shopping guides, town criers, dollar stretchers and other similar publications, distributed to the public, without consideration, for purposes of advertising and public information.

(2) To qualify as a shopping paper for purposes of this subdivision, the publication must also:

(i) be distributed to the public on a community-wide basis;

(ii) be published at stated intervals at least 50 times a year;

(iii) have continuity as to title and general nature of content from issue to issue;

(iv) contain in each issue news of general or community interest and community notices or editorial comment or articles by different authors;

(v) not constitute a book, either singly or when successive issues are put together;

(vi) contain in each issue advertisements from numerous unrelated advertisers;

(vii) be independently owned, in that the publication is not owned by or under the control of the owners or lessees of a shopping center or a merchants association or similar entity or a business which sells property or services (other than advertising), and the advertisements in such publication are not predominantly for the property or services sold by such business; and

(viii) have not in excess of 90 percent of the printed area of each issue for advertisements.

(3) Receipts from the retail sale of a shopping paper to the publisher of such publication are exempt from the tax imposed by subdivision (a) of section 1105 of the Tax Law, and receipts from the sale of printing services performed in publishing such paper are exempt from the tax imposed by paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of such section.

(e)Advertising supplements.

(1) An advertising supplement is a publication consisting of advertising, printed in the form of newspaper sheets or other form which is distributed with a newspaper, mailed out directly, or used by retail stores as handouts. Advertising supplements, when distributed as inserts in a newspaper, periodical or shopping paper, are considered part of such newspaper, periodical or shopping paper.

(2) Advertising in the form of a section, purchased from a newspaper publisher, pursuant to the advertising rate schedule for insertion in its newspaper and numbered as part of the newspaper is part of the newspaper and not an advertising supplement.

(3) The charge by a printer to an advertiser for whom an advertising supplement is produced is taxable, as a sale of tangible personal property, except to the extent that the charge is for supplements which are distributed with newspapers, periodicals or shopping papers.

(4) The purchase of materials by a printer which become a component part of the advertising supplement such as paper and ink is not taxable because it is for resale.

(5) The charge by a newspaper to an advertiser for distribution of the advertising supplement with the newspaper is a nontaxable advertising service.

Example 1:

A retailer orders a four-page sheet of advertising from a printer, and has all the copies delivered to a newspaper for distribution with the newspaper. The purchase is exempt from the tax.

Example 2:

A retailer orders a four-page sheet of advertising from a newspaper publisher for distribution with a newspaper, and for distribution with a newspaper published by another newspaper company. The purchase of the advertising supplement is exempt from tax.

Example 3:

A retailer orders 100,000 four-page sheets of advertising from a printer, 75,000 of which are delivered to the retailer's stores. Those advertising sheets which are delivered to the stores are subject to tax and the printer must collect tax based on the proportionate value to the total charge.

(f)Purchases by publishers of newspapers, periodicals and shopping papers.

(1) Purchases of paper and ink used in the publication of newspapers and periodicals are exempt under section 1118(5) of the Tax Law. See section 531.5 of this Title.

(2) Purchases of tangible personal property which become a physical component part of newspapers or periodicals are purchased for resale and, therefore, not subject to tax.

(3) Purchases of paper, ink and any other tangible personal property for use in the publication of a shopping paper, which become a physical component part of such shopping paper, are exempt under section 1115(a)(20) of the Tax Law. A shopping paper is defined in section 1115(i) of the Tax Law. See subdivision (d) of this section.

Cross-reference:

See Part 543 of this Title, printing industry.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 20 § 528.6