(a) The retail sale, lease, licensing or use of computer software in this state, including prewritten and custom computer software, shall be subject to the tax levied by this chapter, regardless of whether the software is delivered electronically, delivered by use of tangible storage media, loaded or programmed into a computer, created on the premises of the consumer or otherwise provided. The tax shall be levied on the sales price or purchase price of the computer software at a rate equal to the rate of tax levied on the sale of tangible personal property at retail by § 67-6-202.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 67-6-231

  • Business: includes occasional and isolated sales or transactions of aircraft, vessels, or motor vehicles between corporations and their members or stockholders and also includes such transactions caused by the merger, consolidation, or reorganization of corporations. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Computer: means an electronic device that accepts information in digital or similar form and manipulates it for a result based on a sequence of instructions. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Computer software: means a set of coded instructions designed to cause a computer or automatic data processing equipment to perform a task. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Data center: means a building or buildings, either newly constructed, expanded, or remodeled, housing high-tech computer systems and related equipment. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Dealer: means every person, as used in this chapter, including Model 1, Model 2, and Model 3 sellers, where the context requires, who:
    (A) Manufactures or produces tangible personal property for sale at retail, for use, consumption, distribution, or for storage to be used or consumed in this state. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Delivered electronically: means delivered to the purchaser by means other than tangible storage media. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Electronic: means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Qualified data center: means a data center that has made a required capital investment in excess of one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) during an investment period not to exceed three (3) years and that creates at least fifteen (15) net new full-time employee jobs during the investment period paying at least one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the states' average occupational wage as defined in §. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Resale: means a subsequent, bona fide sale of the property, services, or taxable item by the purchaser. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Sale: includes the furnishing of any of the things or services taxable under this chapter. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Sales price: includes consideration received by the seller from third parties, if:
    (i) The seller actually receives consideration from a party other than the purchaser, and the consideration is directly related to a price reduction or discount on the sale. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Software: means computer software. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Storage: means and includes any keeping or retention in this state of tangible personal property for use or consumption in this state, or for any purpose other than sale at retail in the regular course of business. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Tangible personal property: includes electricity, water, gas, steam, and prewritten computer software. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
  • Use: means and includes the exercise of any right or power over tangible personal property incident to the ownership thereof, except that it does not include the sale at retail of that property in the regular course of business. See Tennessee Code 67-6-102
(b) For purposes of subsection (a), “use of computer software” includes the access and use of software that remains in the possession of the dealer who provides the software or in the possession of a third party on behalf of such dealer. If the customer accesses the software from a location in this state as indicated by the residential street address or the primary business address of the customer, such access shall be deemed equivalent to the sale or licensing of the software and electronic delivery of the software for use in this state. If the sales price or purchase price of the software relates to users located both in this state and outside this state as indicated by a residential street or business address, the dealer or customer may allocate to this state a percentage of the sales price or purchase price that equals the percentage of users in this state. Any dealer that purchases computer software only for the purpose of reselling access and use of such software as described in this subsection (b) shall be entitled to purchase such software exempt from the tax imposed by this chapter, subject to the same rules that apply generally to any sale of tangible personal property for resale; provided, however, that software purchased by a qualified data center for access and use by an affiliated company, as defined by § 67-6-395(c), shall be deemed to be used and consumed by the qualified data center and not resold to the affiliated company. Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be construed to impose a tax on any services that are not currently subject to tax under this chapter, such as, but not limited to, information or data processing services, including the capability of the customer to analyze such information or data provided by the dealer; payment or transaction processing services; payroll processing services; billing and collection services; internet access; the storage of data, digital codes, or computer software; or the service of converting, managing, and distributing digital products.
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