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Cash Reporting Rules Do Not Apply to Some Commercial Vehicles

Mar 02, 2007

Did you know…that the cash transaction reporting rules do not apply to all vehicles? Form 8300 reporting requirements apply to sales of “consumer durables.” These are defined by the IRS as follows: “Consumer Durable—an item of tangible personal property of a type that is suitable under ordinary usage for personal consumption or use and has a sales price of more than $10,000. The item can reasonably be expected to be useful for at least one year under ordinary usage.”

The important consideration is whether it would be reasonably possible to use the vehicle for consumer purposes, not what the buyer plans to do with it. Thus a heavy duty pickup would not be exempt, because it could be used as someone’s personal vehicle. But a wrecker, or a bulldozer, or a heavy highway truck would be exempt, as these are unsuitable for consumer use. Therefore, cash in excess of $10,000 does not need to be reported in transactions involving these vehicles. That’s a loophole you could drive a truck through!

How could anyone be expected to know this and the thousands of other tricky rules and regulations governing the retail automotive industry? By purchasing the NJ CAR Legal & Regulatory Compliance Guide for Automotive Retailers, where you will find Form 8300 information in Volume Five, Chapter 8, Section 1. Call NJ CAR to order a copy, or sign up for the new NJ CAR Regulatory Compliance Certification Program (see article on Page 2 for details).