Wis. Admin. Code Department of Revenue Tax 11.65

Current through August 26, 2024

Section Tax 11.65 - Admissions

(1) TAXABLE SALES.

(a) The sale of admissions to amusement, athletic, entertainment, or recreational events or places and the furnishing for dues, fees or other considerations, the privilege of access to clubs or the privilege of having access to or the use of amusement, entertainment, athletic, or recreational facilities are taxable. This includes admissions to movies, ballets, musical and dance performances, ball games, campgrounds, circuses, carnivals, plays, hockey games, ice shows, fairs, snowmobile and automobile races, and pleasure tours or cruises.

(b) The sales tax applies to the receipts of organizations which have as an objective the supplying of amusement, athletic, entertainment, or recreational facilities to their members such as country clubs, golf clubs, athletic clubs, swimming clubs, yachting clubs, tennis clubs, and flying clubs. Taxable sales include the sale, furnishing or use of recreational facilities on a periodic basis and other recreational rights, including but not limited to membership rights, vacation services, and club memberships. The proceeds received from initiation fees, special assessments, dues, and stock sales of clubs supplying amusement, athletic, entertainment, or recreational facilities to members are charges for the privilege of obtaining access to the clubs and are taxable receipts of the clubs.

(c) Admissions to customer participation events such as swimming, skiing, bowling, skating, bingo, golfing, curling, dancing, card playing, hayrides, hunting, fishing, and horseback or pony riding, including entry fees for leagues, tournaments, and contests, are taxable.

(d) The charge for the privilege of fishing in fish ponds is taxable, even if the charge is based in whole or in part on the pounds or size of fish caught. The charge for the privilege of hunting in shooting preserves, pheasant farms, and fenced area bird and animal farms is also taxable, even if the charge is based in whole or in part on the number of game birds or animals taken.

(e) A person who provides boat, tackle, bait, and guide service provides a combination of recreational items which are subject to the tax, but guide service alone is not taxable.

(f) The sales tax applies to the receipts from conducting bingo games.

(g) The receipts from the sale or furnishing of access to campgrounds, other than Wisconsin state park campgrounds, are taxable, whether the fees are collected on a daily, weekly, annual, or other basis.

(h) The sale of admissions to pleasure tours and cruises, including a cruise originating in Wisconsin by boat on a body of water on the border of Wisconsin, is taxable regardless of whether a portion of the cruise takes place on out-of-state waters.

(2) NONTAXABLE SALES. The following are nontaxable admissions:

(a) The dues of civic, fraternal, religious, patriotic, and lodge type organizations which are not organized for the purpose of furnishing amusement, athletic, entertainment, or recreational facilities to their members.

(b) Admissions to museums of history, art, or science, and to auto or trade shows, if professional entertainment is not provided at the show. Also, all admission fees to any museum operated by a nonprofit corporation under a lease agreement with the state historical society, such as the circus world museum.

(c) Admissions to antique shows unless the admission charge can be used as a credit against the price of merchandise purchased.

(d) Entry fees in contests if the primary motive of the majority of the persons entering the contest is "business" and not "recreation." Generally, entry fees are not taxable for:

1. Professional golfers entering a major tournament.

2. Professional riders entering a rodeo.

3. Professional stock car drivers entering an auto race.

4. Large snowmobile races where the entrants are primarily manufacturers' representatives.

(e) The sales price from the sales of tangible personal property, items, property, and goods under s. 77.52(1) (b), (c), and (d), Stats., tickets or admissions by any baseball team affiliated with the Wisconsin department of American legion baseball.

(f) Campground fees in Wisconsin state parks.

(g) Admissions to events conducted by nonprofit organizations when the event does not involve entertainment as provided in s. 77.54(7m), Stats., the organization is not engaged in a trade or business as defined in s. 77.54(7m), Stats., and the organization is not otherwise required to hold a seller's permit. Sales of admissions to events conducted by a nonprofit organization that otherwise meets the requirements of s. 77.54(7m), Stats., are not subject to tax, even if the nonprofit organization holds a seller's permit solely for the purpose of conducting bingo games.

(h) Admissions to places or events located outside Wisconsin.

(i) Sales of and admissions to time-share property as follows:

1. The furnishing of rooms or lodging to a person for a continuous period of less than one month through the sale of any kind of time-share property.

2. The sale, furnishing, or use of recreational facilities on a periodic basis and of other recreational rights, including membership rights, vacation services, and club memberships, with respect to time-share property, if the facilities are not available to persons who have not purchased the time-share property, other than guests.

(j) Sales of admissions by a nonprofit organization to participate in any sports activity in which more than 50 percent of the participants are 19 years old or younger.

(k) Sales of admissions by a gun club, including the sale of a gun club membership, if the gun club is a nonprofit organization and if the gun club provides safety classes to at least 25 individuals in the calendar year.

(l) Sightseeing flights.

(3) PRIZE MONEY. The amounts of taxable tournament and league entrance fees advertised and set aside for prize money are exempt from tax.

(4) DONATIONS.

(a) Persons conducting recreational events occasionally assert that the receipts are not taxable because they are donations and not charges for admission. To qualify as a donation, a payment shall be totally voluntary and no restriction whatsoever may be placed on the entrance of persons not making a donation. The facts surrounding the requests for the donation shall be obvious that admittance is not restricted to those making a donation. A set amount for the donation, such as through newspaper publicity or signs at the entrance, a turnstile, or restrictive device that shall be passed through, or an attendant requesting a donation at the door shall be presumptive evidence that the charge is not a donation but that the payment is required.

(b) When a charge to a patron bears little or no relationship to the actual value received, the tax may be based on the reasonable value of the tangible personal property, items, property, and goods under s. 77.52(1) (b), (c), and (d), Stats., and taxable services received. The retailer is responsible for determining the reasonable value and showing that the charge to the patron bears little or no relationship to the actual value received.

Examples:

1) Company A puts on a fundraising dinner. Individuals wishing to attend the dinner must pay $300 per person to attend. The actual value of the dinner received is $50. Company A may compute the tax that must be remitted on the $50 since that is the actual value of the dinner received. The actual value in this example is based on the amount that an individual would be required to pay for this dinner if it was not a fundraising dinner.

2) Company B puts on a fundraising dinner and dance. Individuals wishing to attend the dinner and dance must pay $300 per person to attend. The actual value of the dinner received is $50 and the actual value of admission to the dance is $25. Company B may compute the tax that must be remitted on the $75 since that is the actual value of the dinner and admission to the dance that is received. The actual values in this example are based on the amount that an individual would be required to pay for the dinner and to attend the dance if this was not a fundraising dinner and dance.

(5) LOCATION OF EVENT. The receipts from sales of admissions to places of amusement or athletic events that are located or take place in Wisconsin are taxable, even though some of the sales may be made out-of-state. The receipts from sales of admissions to places of amusement or athletic events that are located or take place out-of-state are not subject to Wisconsin sales tax, even though some of the sales may be made in Wisconsin.

Example: Sales by the University of Wisconsin of football tickets for games played in Wisconsin are taxable. However, if the University of Wisconsin, as agent, sells tickets for the University of Michigan for a game played in Michigan, the receipts are not subject to the Wisconsin sales tax.

Note: Section Tax 11.65 interprets ss. 77.52(1) and (2) (a) 2 and 77.54(7m), (10), (35), and (65m), Stats.

Wis. Admin. Code Department of Revenue Tax 11.65

Cr. Register, January, 1978, No. 265, eff. 2-1-78; am. (1) (d), cr. (1) (g) and (h), Register, September, 1984, No. 345, eff. 10-1-84; am. (2) (b), cr. (2) (e), Register, July, 1987, No. 379, eff. 8-1-87; am. (1) (b), (e), (f) and (g) and (4) (a) and (b), cr. (2) (f) and (g), Register, June, 1991, No. 426, eff. 7-1-91; EmR0924: emerg. am. (1) (a), (b), (d) to (g), (2) (a), (b), (e), (g), (3), (4) and (5), cr. (2) (h) to (k), eff. 10-1-09; CR 09-090: am. (1) (a), (b), (d) to (g), (2) (a), (b), (e), (g), (3), (4) and (5), cr. (2) (h) to (k) Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10; CR 10-094: am. (5) Register November 2010 No. 659, eff. 12-1-10; CR 12-014: cr. (2) (L), am. (4) (b), cr. (4) (b) (Examples) Register August 2012 No. 680, eff. 9-1-12.

Amended by, correction in (6) (Note [1]) made under s. 13.92(4) (b) 7, Stats., Register June 2018 No. 750, eff. 7/1/2018

Amended by, CR 20-018: am. (1) (c), (3) Register July 2021 No. 787, eff. 8/1/2021

The interpretations in s. Tax 11.65 are effective under the general sales and use tax law on and after September 1, 1969, except: (a) Bingo receipts became taxable December 30, 1973, pursuant to Chapter 156, Laws of 1973; (b) The exemption for admissions to museums operated under a lease with the State Historical Society became effective July 20, 1985, pursuant to 1985 Wis. Act 29; (c) The exemption for admissions to American Legion baseball became effective September 1, 1985, pursuant to 1985 Wis. Act 29; (d) Recreational facilities and rights sold in connection with the sale of time-share property became taxable May 17, 1988, pursuant to 1987 Wis. Act 399; (e) The exemption for state park campground fees became effective September 1, 1989, pursuant to 1989 Wis. Act 31; (f) The exemption for admissions to certain gun clubs became effective July 1, 2007, pursuant to 2005 Wis. Act 327; (g) The exemption for sales of admissions by nonprofit organizations to certain youth sports activities became effective July 1, 2009, pursuant to 2009 Wis. Act 28; (h) The change of the term "gross receipts" to "sales price" and the separate impositions of tax on coins and stamps sold above face value under s. 77.52(1) (b), Stats., certain leased property affixed to real property under s. 77.52(1) (c), Stats., and digital goods under s. 77.52(1) (d), Stats., became effective October 1, 2009, pursuant to 2009 Wis. Act 2; and (i) The exemption for tournament or league entrance fees advertised and set aside as prize money in s. 77.54(65m) (a) 3, Stats., became effective December 1, 2017, pursuant to 2017 Wis. Act 59.