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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;sturmgrenadier, post: 840395, member: 18711&quot;]I am a Virginia state resident, and I recently found a nice coin for sale from a Virginia Beach based coin dealer.&nbsp; Imagine my chagrin when the invoice came and it included sales tax. This is the first time that sales tax has been levied on me for a coin purchase. I should explain that all of the central and western states I have lived in have some type of exemption for the purchase of coins, currency and bullion (some more extensive than others). I think charging sales tax on the purchase of said items is *^$#(*&amp;@</p><p><br /></p><p>I know there are counter arguments. The most common one I hear is the equity principle: everything else is taxed so why should there be a special exemption for numismatic goods. I can also understand the concern that granting coins, etc. an exemption sets a dangerous, fiscal precedent in the sense that it opens the floodgates to every type of hobby/special interest group lobbying for their own sales tax exemption.</p><p><br /></p><p>But I feel that there is an important distinction to be made with numismatic goods: they constitute more of an investment than an ordinary good (durable or consumable). I think this for several reasons. First, even die-hard collectors are investors to some degree because we all would like to see the values of our collection appreciate over time; there really isn&#039;t any such thing as a &#039;pure collector&#039;. There are only &#039;collector-investors&#039;. Second, bullion coins can be included in Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) accounts. Third, coins, currency and bullion are actively traded on exchange markets (unlike other collectibles).</p><p><br /></p><p>When I go to coin shows in Virginia, I have purchased many coins from both Virginia-based and out-of-state dealers and have never been charged sales tax. No one seems to worry about legal/regulatory consequences. Not only do dealers not charge me sales tax, but some are brazen enough to even give me receipts reflecting no tax levied. I can only surmise that numismatic transactions constitute such a relatively tiny amount of tax revenue that it is not worth it for state revenue collecting agencies (with their already limited, overstretched resources) to send revenue agents to coin shows. So I have long been accustomed to not having to pay taxes on coins.</p><p><br /></p><p>Back to my story, I canceled the coin transaction. I briefly considered enlisting the help of an out-of-state family member to evade the tax by shipping it out-of-state, but I decided it wasn&#039;t worth the hassle. I figure that there are plenty of nice coins out there, and I will find them in due time (probably at shows) and naturally, I will not pay sales tax on them.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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