HAR § 18-237-29.53-05 — Services related to tangible personal property

Services related to tangible personal property are used or consumed where the tangible personal property is delivered after the services are performed. Services related to tangible personal property include, but are not limited to, inspection, appraisal, testing, and repair of tangible personal property. Services related to tangible personal property do not include services performed by commissioned agents. Example 1: Tom Tourist, a resident of Montana vacationing in Hawaii, takes his broken mobile phone to Fixer LLC, an electronic repair shop in Hawaii. After Fixer LLC repairs the mobile phone, Tom Tourist picks it up from Fixer LLC’s shop in Hawaii. All of the value or gross income that Fixer LLC receives is not exempt under section 237-29.53, HRS, because Fixer LLC’s service is used or consumed in Hawaii, where the property was delivered after the service was performed. Example 2: Assume the same facts as in Example 1, except that Fixer LLC, upon Tom Tourist’s request, ships the mobile phone to Tom Tourist’s home in Montana after completing the repair. All of the value or gross income that Fixer LLC receives is exempt under section 237-29.53, HRS, because Fixer LLC’s service is used or consumed in Montana, where the property was delivered after the service was performed. Example 3: Assume the same facts as in Example 1, except that Fixer LLC is unable to repair Tom Tourist’s mobile phone at its shop in Hawaii. Fixer LLC sends the phone to its warehouse in Arizona, where the repair is completed. The mobile phone is shipped back to Fixer LLC’s shop in Hawaii, where Tom Tourist picks it up. All of the value or gross income that Fixer LLC receives is not exempt under section 237-29.53, HRS, because Fixer LLC’s service is used or consumed in Hawaii, where the property was delivered after the service was performed. Example 4: Derrick Driver, a resident of Hawaii, calls Aloha Auto Finder, LLC, a car broker located in Hawaii, and hires it to find and negotiate a purchase price for a green classic car. Derrick Driver provides Aloha Auto Finder, LLC with a list of specifications that the car must have and the total amount he is willing to pay for the car. Derrick Driver and Aloha Auto Finder, LLC agree that Aloha Auto Finder, LLC will be paid a flat fee of $500. Aloha Auto Finder, LLC finds a green classic car in Michigan and negotiates a purchase price on behalf of Derrick Driver. Derrick Driver purchases the car and instructs the seller to ship the car from Michigan to Derrick Driver’s second home in Rhode Island. Section 237-29.53-05 does not apply because Aloha Auto Finder, LLC is a commissioned agent. Instead, section 237-29.53-10 applies. Under that rule, all of the value or gross income that Aloha Auto Finder, LLC receives is not exempt under section 237-29.53, HRS, because Aloha Auto Finder, LLC’s services are used or consumed in Hawaii, where Aloha Auto Finder, LLC is located.