From the North Carolina Department of Revenue

July 16, 2010.  North Carolinians can save money by purchasing items like clothing, school supplies and computers during the state’s sales tax holiday that begins on Friday, Aug. 6 and runs through Sunday, Aug. 8.

Clothing, footwear, and school supplies of $100 or less per item; school instructional materials of $300 or less per item; sports and recreational equipment of $50 or less per item; computers of $3,500 or less per item; and computer supplies of $250 or less per item will be exempt from sales tax. The holiday begins at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 6 and lasts until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 8.

• Note: the specific types of items that are exempt from sales tax are defined in detail for the holiday. Items are not exempt from sales tax just because they are required by a child’s school or sports team.

Go to http://www.dor.state.nc.us/taxes/sales/salestax_holiday.html for more details on the 2010 sales tax holiday, including a technical bulletin that specifies the items that are exempt from sales tax.

Understanding How The Sales Tax Holiday Works

Retailers may not charge sales taxes and require taxpayers to request refunds of those taxes, either from the retailer or the Department of Revenue. In cases where the sales taxes are charged during the holiday on purchases that should be exempt, the purchaser’s only option for a refund is the retailer.

Participation in the sales tax holiday is required. Retailers may not “opt out” of the holiday.

Discounts from retailers’ coupons are deducted from the price of an item before you determine if the item is eligible for the sales tax exemption. Example: a customer buys a dress priced at $105 and uses a retailer’s coupon for a 10 percent discount. The discounted sales price of the dress is $94.50 ($105.00 - $10.50 = $94.50) and the dress is exempt from sales tax if purchased during the holiday. Manufacturers’ coupons are treated just the opposite way; manufacturers’ couponsare not deducted from the sales price before determining eligibility for sales tax exemption.

Rebates do not affect the sales price of an item for the sales tax holiday. Example: a computer priced at $4,000 with a $600 rebate is not exempt from sales taxes because the amount of the rebate is not considered when determining whether the computer is more than the $3,500 limit for computers.

• Please note the difference in how coupons and rebates affect whether or not an item is exempt from tax during the holiday.

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