1. a. Except as provided in paragraph “b”, each person subject to this section and section 423.36 and in accordance with the provisions of this section and section 423.36 shall, on or before the last day of the month following the close of each calendar month during which such person is or has become or ceased being subject to the provisions of this section and section 423.36, make, sign, and file electronically a return for the calendar month in the form as may be required. Returns shall show information relating to sales prices including tangible personal property, specified digital products, and services converted to the use of such person, the amounts of sales prices excluded and exempt from the tax, the amounts of sales prices subject to tax, a calculation of tax due, and any other information for the period covered by the return as may be required. Returns shall be signed by the retailer or the retailer’s authorized agent and must be certified by the retailer to be correct in accordance with forms and rules prescribed by the director. A person required to file a sales or use tax return who is unable to do so may request permission from the director to file a return by another method.

 b. Notwithstanding paragraph “a”, each person subject to this section who collects and remits less than one thousand two hundred dollars in sales or use tax to the department per calendar year may file a return on or before the last day of the month following the close of the calendar year.

Terms Used In Iowa Code 423.31

  • Affiliate: means an entity that directly or indirectly controls, is controlled with or by, or is under common control with another entity. See Iowa Code 423.3
  • Agent: means a person appointed by a seller to represent the seller before the member states. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Agreement: means the streamlined sales and use tax agreement authorized by subchapter IV of this chapter to provide a mechanism for establishing and maintaining a cooperative, simplified system for the application and administration of sales and use taxes. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Business: means those businesses conducted for profit, but excludes professions and occupations and nonprofit organizations. See Iowa Code 423.3
  • Consumer: means any person who has title to or possession of tobacco products in storage, for use or other consumption in this state. See Iowa Code 453A.42
  • Department: means the department of revenue. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Director: means the director of revenue. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Electronic: means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • month: means a calendar month, and the word "year" and the abbreviation "A. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Person: means an individual, trust, estate, fiduciary, partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, corporation, or any other legal entity. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Personal property: includes but is not limited to tangible personal property and specified digital products. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Purchase: means any transfer, exchange, or barter, conditional or otherwise, in any manner or by any means whatsoever, for a consideration. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Retailer: includes a seller obligated to collect sales or use tax, including any person obligated to collect sales and use tax pursuant to section 423. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • sale: includes a rental. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Sales tax: means the tax levied under subchapter II of this chapter. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Services: means all acts or services rendered, furnished, or performed, other than services used in processing of tangible personal property for use in retail sales or services, for an employer who pays the wages of an employee for a valuable consideration by any person engaged in any business or occupation specifically enumerated in section 423. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Specified digital products: means electronically transferred digital audio-visual works, digital audio works, digital books, or other digital products. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • State: means any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Tangible personal property: includes electricity, water, gas, steam, and prewritten computer software. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Taxpayer: includes any person who is subject to a tax imposed by this chapter, whether acting on the person's own behalf or as a fiduciary. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • United States: includes all the states. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Use: means and includes the exercise by any person of any right or power over or access to tangible personal property or a specified digital product incident to the ownership of that property, or any right or power over or access to the product or result of a service. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • Use tax: means the tax levied under subchapter III of this chapter. See Iowa Code 423.1
  • year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1
 2.  The director may authorize incorporated banks and trust companies or other depositories authorized by law which are depositories or financial agents of the United States, or of this state, to receive any sales or use tax imposed under this chapter, in the manner, at the times, and under the conditions the director prescribes. The director shall prescribe the manner, times, and conditions under which the receipt of the tax by those depositories is to be treated as payment of the tax to the department.
 3. Every retailer at the time of making any return required by this section shall compute and pay to the department the tax due for the preceding period. The tax on sales prices from the sale of tangible personal property under a consumer rental purchase agreement as defined in section 537.3604, subsection 8, is payable in the tax period of receipt.
 4. a. Upon making application and receiving approval from the director, a person and its affiliates that make retail sales of tangible personal property, specified digital products, or taxable enumerated services may make deposits and file a consolidated sales or use tax return for the affiliated group, pursuant to rules adopted by the director. A person and each affiliate that files a consolidated return are jointly and severally liable for all tax, penalty, and interest found due for the tax period for which a consolidated return is filed or required to be filed.

 b. A business required to file a consolidated sales or use tax return shall file a form entitled “schedule of consolidated business locations” with its sales or use tax return that shows the taxpayer‘s consolidated permit number, the permit number for each Iowa business location, the state sales tax amount by business location, and the amount of state sales tax due on goods consumed that are not assigned to a specific business location. Consolidated sales or use tax returns that are not accompanied by the schedule of consolidated business locations form are considered incomplete and are subject to penalty under section 421.27.
 5. If necessary or advisable in order to ensure the payment of the tax, the director may require returns and payment of the tax to be made for other than monthly periods, the provisions of this section or other provision to the contrary notwithstanding.
 6. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Code to the contrary, the department shall not attempt to collect delinquent sales tax on a transaction involving the furnishing of lawn care, landscaping, or tree trimming and removal services which occurred more than five years from the date of an audit.
 7. Persons required to file a return under this section may instead file a simplified electronic return pursuant to section 423.49.
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