Help! Crazy Car Use Tax from move to CA

[cleosmom]

I'm confused, then again I don't live in CA. Isn't the Use Tax for items purchased in states where you are not charged a sales tax?

[Electrician4you]

Originally Posted by 99Percenter

The amount of time I spend in the state DOES matter. 10 days later and I would owe $0.

No. It doesn’t matter. What do you not understand. You purchased a car in this state and you registered it in your name. That purchase has a tax attached to it. Thats the use tax. You’re paying the tax on the purchase.

Btw you would probably be paying the tax even if you registered in the other state as it was a registration name change.

Originally Posted by cleosmom

I'm confused, then again I don't live in CA. Isn't the Use Tax for items purchased in states where you are not charged a sales tax?

Usually trailers automobiles boats etc. when you registervthe vehicle you pay a use tax. This stops people from going out of state to buy cars, boats, trailers and bring them back. There are some time limits etc. but that’s what it’s for.

If you buy a used car you are usually charged a use tax on the sale. This gets applied when you register the vehicle.

[Pyramidsurf]

Originally Posted by Electrician4you

No. It doesn’t matter. What do you not understand. You purchased a car in this state....

Perhaps you should go back and read the first post. They did not buy the car in this state.



Your best bet is waiting 10 days and then going to register it. Go to a different DMV if you have to.

[Electrician4you]

Originally Posted by Pyramidsurf

Perhaps you should go back and read the first post. They did not buy the car in this state.



Your best bet is waiting 10 days and then going to register it. Go to a different DMV if you have to.

Perhaps you should understand the laws. The calculator on the CA DMV site sucks, but somewhere between 1 and 3 years of ownership is how long before the sales tax is no longer due. I thought it was 1 year. You do get credit on the tax paid to another state, but if you paid nothing you'll owe the entire amount.

[Pyramidsurf]

Originally Posted by Electrician4you

Perhaps you should understand the laws.

I'm well aware of the laws. You stated that the OP bought the car in state which they did not.

[DKM]

You should have looked at how it works and adjusted the date by 10 days. Too bad so sad...

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by 99Percenter

Can anybody suggest an actionable approach to try and get out of paying this ridiculous car use tax in CA when I bought my car in another state almost a year ago? I was in another state almost the entire year save about 10 days.

Like an honest citizen, I dated my car registration form honestly instead of fudging the date. Now I owe over $1100 when I wasn’t even in CA almost the whole year! If I had fudged the date I would owe $0! How does that make any sense?!!!

Now I am a Kafkaesque nightmare. I have about 30 days left on a temporary registration to try and find relief from paying this tax. I went to a local CDTFA office (California Department of Tax and Fee Administration). I got the expected bureaucratic response of there was no possible relief from the tax.

Anybody have any suggested actions to take? Obviously I am open to ideas since this is going to otherwise cost me $1,100.

So you learned something - do research first. It might have been an expensive lesson, but suck it up and pay. Or just call it what it is: "a less than super intelligent" tax.

[11thHour]

It sucks dude. Welcome to Cali, where they bed you over a 1000 different ways to squeeze every last drop of blood out of you.

[cruitr]

I'd skip the DMV and go to a AAA facility. Here in CA, AAA can do just about everything the DMV does when it comes to cars and trucks. They also offer advice. AAA cannot help you with your drivers license.

[Electrician4you]

Originally Posted by Pyramidsurf

I'm well aware of the laws. You stated that the OP bought the car in state which they did not.

Ok you got me on that small thing. It doesn’t matter anyway. As far as the state is concerned he bought the vehicle and when he came in the state he wasn’t past the amount of time that would not of triggered a use tax fee. Since he didn’t he now owes the use tax.