Indiana Department of Revenue recently issued Revenue Ruling No. 2013-01ST dated October 2016 giving direction that a Company’s cloud collaboration services would not be subject to Indiana sales because the cloud services were not a taxable service. Services generally are not taxable, including ancillary services, but telecommunications services are taxable. However, access to pre-written computer software maintained on computer servers outside of Indiana is taxable when access is made via the Internet. The technology solutions company provided cloud-based applications and related services to support customers’ telecommunication equipment, including voice, video, messaging, presence, audio, web conferencing, and mobile capabilities. Customers would have to use their own telecommunication and Internet connections to obtain the services provided. In addition, the company did not transfer pre-written computer software; customers would not possess, control, nor hold title in the company’s software when accessing it.
Property that is furnished as part of a service may be taxable. Property purchased and used by the company in providing the services was taxable as the property was consumed by the company and not resold.