Article 3 - Auxiliary Collection Provisions

California Revenue and Taxation Code — §§ 6291-6295

Sections (5)

Amended by Stats. 2000, Ch. 861, Sec. 6.2. Effective September 29, 2000. Operative December 31, 2001, pursuant to Sec. 67 of Ch. 861.

Notwithstanding Section 6451, the use taxes imposed by this part with respect to the storage, use or other consumption in this state of a mobilehome or commercial coach required to be registered annually under the Health and Safety Code, or of a vehicle required to be registered under the Vehicle Code, or of a vehicle subject to identification under Division 16.5 (commencing with Section 38000) of the Vehicle Code, or a vehicle that qualifies under the permanent trailer identification plate program pursuant to subdivision (a) of

Section 5014.1 of the Vehicle Code, or of a vessel or an aircraft as defined in this chapter are due and payable by the purchaser at the time the storage, use, or other consumption of the property first becomes taxable. Delinquency penalties and interest with respect to use tax for mobilehomes or commercial coaches registered annually with the Department of Housing and Community Development or for vehicles registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles shall be as provided in Section 6292. Delinquency penalties and interest with respect to use tax for vehicles subject to identification under Division 16.5 (commencing with Section 38000) of the Vehicle Code or a vehicle that qualifies under the permanent trailer identification plate program pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 5014.1 of the Vehicle Code shall be as provided in Section 6293. Delinquency penalties and interest with respect to use tax for vessels and aircraft shall be imposed as if the due date of the tax were fixed by Section

6451.

§ 6292

Amended by Stats. 1991, Ch. 236, Sec. 2. Effective July 29, 1991.

(a)Except when the sale is by lease, when a mobilehome or commercial coach required to be registered annually under the Health and Safety Code or a vehicle required to be registered under the Vehicle Code is sold at retail by other than a person licensed or certificated pursuant to the Health and Safety Code or the Vehicle Code as a manufacturer, remanufacturer, dealer, dismantler, or lessor-retailer, subject to Section 11615.5 of the Vehicle Code, the retailer is not required or authorized to collect the use tax from the purchaser, but the purchaser of the vehicle shall pay the use tax to the

Department of Housing and Community Development acting for and on behalf of the board pursuant to Section 18123 of the Health and Safety Code or to the Department of Motor Vehicles acting for and on behalf of the board pursuant to Section 4750.5 of the Vehicle Code.

(b)If the purchaser makes an application to either department which is not timely, and is subject to penalty because of delinquency in effecting registration or transfer of registration of the vehicle, he or she then becomes liable also for penalty as specified in Section 6591, but no interest shall accrue.

(c)Application to the appropriate department by the purchaser relieves the purchaser of the obligation to file a return with the board under Section 6452.

(d)If the purchaser does not make application to either department, or does not pay the

amount of use tax due, or files a return with the board under Section 6455 which is not timely, interest and penalties shall apply with respect to the unpaid amount as provided in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6451).

§ 6293

Amended by Stats. 2000, Ch. 861, Sec. 6.3. Effective September 29, 2000. Operative December 31, 2001, pursuant to Sec. 67 of Ch. 861.

(a)Except when the sale is by lease, when a vehicle subject to identification under Division 16.5 (commencing with Section 38000) of the Vehicle Code or a vehicle that qualifies under the permanent trailer identification plate program pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 5014.1 of the Vehicle Code, is sold at retail by other than a person licensed or certificated pursuant to the Vehicle Code as a manufacturer, remanufacturer, dealer, dismantler, or lessor-retailer, subject to Section 11615.5 of the Vehicle

Code, or a person required to hold a seller’s permit pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 6066) of Chapter 2 by reason of the number, scope, and character of his or her sales of those vehicles, the retailer is not required or authorized to collect the use tax from the purchaser, but the purchaser of the vehicle shall pay the use tax to the Department of Motor Vehicles acting for and on behalf of the board pursuant to Section 38211 of the Vehicle Code.

(b)If the purchaser makes an application to that department which is not timely, and is subject to penalty because of delinquency in effecting identification or transfer of ownership of the vehicle, he or she then becomes liable also for penalty as specified in Section 6591 of this code, but no interest shall accrue.

(c)Application to that department by the purchaser relieves the purchaser of the obligation to file a

return with the board under Section 6452.

(d)If the purchaser does not make application to that department, or does not pay the amount of use tax due, or files a return with the board under Section 6455 which is not timely, interest and penalties shall apply with respect to the unpaid amount as provided in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6451).

§ 6294

Added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 665, Sec. 1.

(a)When an undocumented vessel required to be registered under the Vehicle Code is sold at retail by other than a person holding a seller’s permit and regularly engaged in the business of selling vessels, the retailer is not required or authorized to collect the use tax from the purchaser, but the purchaser of the vessel must pay the use tax to the Department of Motor Vehicles acting for, and on behalf of, the board pursuant to Section 9928 of the Vehicle Code.

(b)If the purchaser makes an application to the department which is not timely, and is subject to penalty

because of delinquency in effecting registration or transfer of registration of the undocumented vessel, he or she then becomes liable also for penalty as specified in Section 6591, but no interest shall accrue.

(c)Application to the department by the purchaser shall relieve the purchaser of the obligation to file a return with the board under Section 6452.

(d)If the purchaser does not make application to either department, or does not pay the amount of use tax due, or files a return with the board under Section 6455 which is not timely, interest and penalties shall apply with respect to the unpaid amount as provided in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6451).

§ 6295

Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 17, Sec. 2. (SB 132) Effective June 27, 2025.

(a)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (h), when a motor vehicle required to be registered under the Vehicle Code, except for a recreational vehicle that is either truck-mounted, permanently towable on the highways without a permit or a park trailer, as these terms are used in Section 18010 of the Health and Safety Code, is sold at retail by a dealer holding a license issued pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11700) of Division 5 of the Vehicle Code, the dealer shall pay the applicable sales

tax and any applicable use tax due under the Transactions and Use Tax Law (Part 1.6 (commencing with Section 7251)) to the Department of Motor Vehicles acting for and on behalf of the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration pursuant to Sections 4456 and 4750.6 of the Vehicle Code.

(2)The amendments to this subdivision made by Section 11 of Chapter 256 of the Statutes of 2021 do not constitute a change in, but are declaratory of, existing law.

(b)If the dealer makes an application to the Department of Motor Vehicles that is not timely, and is subject to penalty because of delinquency in effecting registration or transfer of registration of the vehicle, the dealer shall also be liable for penalty as specified in Section 6591, but no interest shall accrue.

(c)(1) Application to the Department of Motor Vehicles by

the dealer shall be deemed a return filed with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 6451) of Chapter 5 with respect to amounts reported to the Department of Motor Vehicles pursuant to subdivision (a).

(A) An application submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles that is deemed a filed return pursuant to this subdivision shall be treated as filed on the date the application is submitted.

(B) An application submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles that is deemed a filed return pursuant to this subdivision shall be subject to the requirements of

this part.

(2)The amendments made to this subdivision by the act adding this paragraph shall apply to sales reported to the Department of Motor Vehicles for reporting periods beginning on and after January 1, 2021.

(d)(1) If the dealer fails to make an application to the Department of Motor Vehicles, fails to pay the amount of sales or use tax due, or fails to timely file a return with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration under Section 6452, interest and penalties shall apply with respect to the unpaid amount as provided in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6451).

(2)The amendments to this section made by the act adding this subdivision do

not constitute a change in, but are declaratory of, existing law.

(e)For purposes of this section, the following shall apply:

(1)“Dealer” shall not include a franchisee as defined in Section 331.1 of the Vehicle Code, a franchisee of a recreational vehicle franchise as defined in Section 331.3, a manufacturer or remanufacturer holding a license issued pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 11700) of Division 5 of the Vehicle Code, an automobile dismantler holding a license and certificate issued pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 11500) of Division 5 of the Vehicle Code, or a lessor-retailer holding a license issued pursuant to Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11600) of Division 5 of the Vehicle Code, and subject to the provisions of Section 11615.5 of the Vehicle Code.

(2)“Newly licensed

dealer” means a dealer who was originally licensed by the Department of Motor Vehicles on or after January 1, 2019.

(f)The Department of Motor Vehicles shall, through the adoption of regulations, establish any additional requirements for the implementation of this section.

(g)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), this section shall apply to sales of vehicles occurring on and after January 1, 2021.

(2)Based upon operational needs to effectively enforce the collection of taxes pursuant to this section, the Department of Motor Vehicles may establish the following compliance schedule for this section:

(A)Newly licensed dealers, dealers whose seller’s permit was reinstated within the last two years, and dealers with a previous finding of

underreporting within the last two years shall comply beginning January 1, 2021.

(B)Except as provided in paragraph (3), all other dealers shall comply by January 1, 2023.

(3)Based upon operational needs to effectively enforce the collection of taxes pursuant to this section, the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, in consultation with the Department of Motor Vehicles, may delay the compliance schedule set forth in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) to no later than January 1, 2026, for dealers that made more than 300 retail vehicle sales in the previous calendar year and are not subject to the compliance schedule set forth in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2).

(h)(1) The California Department

of Tax and Fee Administration, in consultation with the Department of Motor Vehicles, may exempt from the requirements of subdivision (a) any dealer, including any dealer that has paid the applicable sales tax and any applicable use tax due to the Department of Motor Vehicles pursuant to subdivision (a) prior to the operative date of the act adding this subdivision, if the dealer sold 1,000 or more vehicles at retail in the current or preceding calendar year and the dealer’s account is in good standing with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration.

(2)The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration may revoke the exemption provided by this subdivision after 30 days following the date the department provides notice to the dealer that either of the following has occurred:

(A)The dealer is no longer in good standing.

(B)The dealer’s retail vehicle sales drop below 1,000 vehicles in any calendar year beginning on or after the operative date of the act adding this subdivision.

(3)For purposes of this subdivision, “good standing” means that the dealer has timely filed and remitted applicable payments, including applicable prepayments, for all required sales and use tax returns for the 12 quarterly reporting periods immediately preceding the issuance of the exemption.