Virginia Code 58.1-633: Records
A. Every dealer required to make a return and pay or collect any tax under this chapter shall keep and preserve suitable records of the sales, leases, or purchases, as the case may be, taxable under this chapter, and such other books of account as may be necessary to determine the amount of tax due hereunder, and such other pertinent information as may be required by the Tax Commissioner.
Attorney's Note
Under the Virginia Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 misdemeanor | up to 12 months | up to $2,500 |
Terms Used In Virginia Code 58.1-633
- Business: includes any activity engaged in by any person, or caused to be engaged in by him, with the object of gain, benefit or advantage, either directly or indirectly. See Virginia Code 58.1-602
- dealer: includes every person that:
1. See Virginia Code 58.1-612
- Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
- Person: includes any individual, firm, copartnership, cooperative, nonprofit membership corporation, joint venture, association, corporation, estate, trust, business trust, trustee in bankruptcy, receiver, auctioneer, syndicate, assignee, club, society, or other group or combination acting as a unit, body politic or political subdivision, whether public or private, or quasi-public, and the plural of "person" means the same as the singular. See Virginia Code 58.1-602
- Personal property: All property that is not real property.
- Retailer: means every person engaged in the business of making sales at retail, or for distribution, use, consumption, or storage to be used or consumed in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 58.1-602
- Tangible personal property: includes (i) telephone calling cards upon their initial sale, which shall be exempt from all other state and local utility taxes, and (ii) manufactured signs. See Virginia Code 58.1-602
B. In order to aid in the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this chapter, all wholesalers and jobbers in this Commonwealth shall keep a record of all sales of tangible personal property, whether such sales be for cash or on terms of credit. Such records shall include the name and address of the purchaser, the number of the certificate of registration issued to the purchaser, the date of the purchase, the article purchased, and the price at which the article is sold to the purchaser. Any wholesaler or jobber failing to keep such records shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Any person who is both a retailer and a wholesaler or jobber and who fails to keep proper records showing wholesale sales and retail sales separately shall pay the tax as a retailer on both classes of his business.
C. For the purpose of enforcing the collection of the tax levied by this chapter, the Tax Commissioner is authorized to examine the books, records, and other documents of all transportation companies, agencies, firms, or persons as defined herein that conduct their business by truck, rail, water, airplane, or otherwise, in order to determine what dealers are importing or otherwise are shipping articles of tangible personal property which are liable for the tax. If such transportation company, agency, firm or person as defined herein refuses to permit such examination of its or his books, records, and other documents by the Tax Commissioner, as aforesaid, it or he shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The Tax Commissioner may proceed by petitioning the appropriate circuit court to require the transportation company, agency, firm, or person to show cause as to why such books, records, and other documents should not be examined pursuant to the injunction of the court, and as to why a bond should not be required with proper security in the penalty of not more than $2,000 conditioned upon compliance with the provisions hereof for a period of not more than 1 year.
Code 1950, § 58-441.29; 1966, c. 151; 1984, c. 675.