§305. Exemptions from the tax
A. Isolated or occasional sales of tangible personal property or services by a person
not engaged in such business shall be exempt from the sales and use tax levied by all taxing
authorities.
B. For purposes of the sales and use tax of all taxing authorities, where a part of the
cost price of a motor vehicle is represented by a motor vehicle returned to the dealer's
inventory, the use tax is payable on the total cost price less the wholesale value of the article
returned.
C.(1) The sales and use tax imposed by the state or by a political subdivision whose
boundaries are coterminous with those of the state shall not apply to sales or purchases of any
of the following:
(a) Food sold for preparation and consumption in the home including but not limited
to bakery products.
(b) Dairy products.
(c) Soft drinks.
(d) Fresh fruits and vegetables.
(e) Package foods requiring further preparation by the purchaser.
(2) Food sales by restaurants, drive-ins, snack bars, candy and nut counters, private
clubs, and sales made by an establishment not otherwise exempted by law shall not be
exempt from the taxes imposed by taxing authorities.
(3)(a) Except as provided for in Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph, the sales and use
tax imposed by R.S. 47:321, 321.1, and 331, or by a political subdivision shall not apply to
the sale or use, for non-residential purposes, of steam, water, electric power or energy,
natural gas, any materials or energy sources used to fuel the generation of electric power for
resale or used by an industrial manufacturing plant for self-consumption or cogeneration, or
energy sources used for boiler fuel except refinery gas.
(b) The exemption from the sales and use tax imposed by R.S. 47:321, 321.1, and
331 provided for in Subparagraph (a) of this Paragraph shall not apply to sales and use, for
non-residential purposes, of mineral water or carbonated water or any water put in bottles,
jugs, or containers.
D.(1) The sale at retail, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and the storage
to be used or consumed in the taxing jurisdiction of the following tangible personal property
is hereby specifically exempted from the tax imposed by taxing authorities, except as
otherwise provided in this Paragraph:
(a) Gasoline.
(b) Natural gas, electricity, and water sold directly to the consumer for residential use
as provided for in Article VII, Section 2.2 of the Constitution of Louisiana. The exemption
provided for in this Subparagraph shall not apply to sales and use of mineral water or
carbonated water or any water put in bottles, jugs, or containers sold directly to the consumer
for residential use.
(c) Tangible personal property and donation of food items to food banks, as defined
in R.S. 9:2799(B).
(d) Food items sold by youth organizations chartered by Congress.
(e)(i) New trucks, new automobiles, new motorcycles, and new aircraft withdrawn
from stock or kept in a dealer's inventory by factory authorized new truck, new automobile,
new motorcycle, and new aircraft dealers, for use as demonstrators.
(ii) Used trucks and used automobiles withdrawn from stock or kept in a dealer's
inventory by new or used motor vehicle dealers for use as demonstrators.
(2)(a) Sales of meals furnished as follows shall be exempt:
(i) To the staff and students of educational institutions, including but not limited to
kindergartens, if the meals are consumed on the premises where purchased, or if they are
purchased in advance by students, faculty, or staff pursuant to a meal plan sponsored by the
institution or organization or purchased in advance pursuant to any other payment
arrangement sanctioned by the institution or organization and generally available to students,
faculty, and staff of the institution or organization, regardless of where such meals are
consumed.
(ii) To the staff and patients of hospitals and to the staff and residents of nursing
homes, adult residential care providers, and continuing care retirement communities.
(iii) To the staff, inmates, and patients of mental institutions.
(iv) To the boarders of rooming houses.
(v) Occasional meals furnished to the public in educational, religious, or medical
organization facilities.
(b) Except as provided for in Item (a)(i) of this Paragraph, the furnishing of such
meals shall be exempt from the taxes imposed by this Chapter if the meals are consumed on
the premises where purchased.
(3)-(6). Repealed by Acts 2024, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 11, §4, eff. Dec. 4, 2024.
E. The sale of the following services shall be exempt from the sales and use tax
imposed by any taxing authority:
(1) Rooms furnished by a temporary lodging facility which is operated by a nonprofit
organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, provided that the
facility is devoted exclusively to the temporary housing, for periods no longer than thirty
days' duration, of homeless transient persons whom the organization determines to be
financially incapable of engaging lodging at a facility defined by R.S. 47:301(6)(a), and
further provided that the lodging charge to these persons is no greater than twenty dollars per
day.
(2) Membership fees or dues of nonprofit, civic organizations including but not
limited to the Young Men's Christian Association, the Catholic Youth Organization, and the
Young Women's Christian Association.
(3) Surface preparation, coating, and painting of a fixed or rotary wing military
aircraft or certified transport category aircraft as long as the Federal Aviation Administration
registration address of the aircraft is not in this state.
(4)(a) Charges for the furnishing of repairs to tangible personal property when the
repaired property is delivered to a common carrier or to the United States Postal Service for
transportation outside the state, or is delivered outside the state by use of the repair dealer's
own vehicle or by use of an independent trucker. However, as to aircraft, delivery may be
by the best available means. Offshore areas shall not be considered another state for the
purposes of this Paragraph. The provisions of this Paragraph shall only apply to sales and
use taxes levied by the state.
(b) The exemption authorized pursuant to the provisions of this Paragraph may
extend to sales and use taxes levied by a parish, municipality, or school board.
F. It is not the intention of any taxing authority to levy a tax upon articles of tangible
personal property or digital products imported into this state, or produced or manufactured
in this state, for export; nor is it the intention of any taxing authority to levy a tax on bona
fide interstate commerce; however, nothing herein shall prevent the collection of the taxes
due on sales of tangible personal property or digital products into this state which are
promoted through the use of catalogs and other means of sales promotion and for which
federal legislation or federal jurisprudence enables the enforcement of the sales tax of a
taxing authority upon the conduct of such business. It is, however, the intention of the taxing
authorities to levy a tax on the sale at retail, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and
the storage to be used or consumed in this state, of tangible personal property or digital
products after they have come to rest in this state and become a part of the mass of property
in this state. When federal legislation or federal jurisprudence as to sales in interstate
commerce promoted through the use of catalogs and other means of sales promotions enables
the enforcement of this Chapter or any other law or local ordinance imposing a sales tax
against vendors that have no other nexus with the taxing jurisdiction, the following
provisions shall apply to the sales on which sales and use tax would not otherwise be
collected.
G.(1) Before January 1, 2025, the single or central sales tax collector for each parish
shall modify returns for reporting and remitting local sales and use tax to include the
following:
(a) A separate line item for the sales of prescription drugs.
(b) A separate line item for the sales of manufacturing, machinery, and equipment.
(2) "Demonstrators" as used in Subsection D of this Section for purposes of the sales
and use tax levied by all taxing authorities shall mean new and used trucks and automobiles
for which dealer inventory plates may be obtained pursuant to R.S. 47:473, and new aircraft
titled in the dealer's name for use as demonstrators which are kept primarily on the dealer's
premises during normal business hours and which are available for demonstration purposes.
However, the occasional use of a demonstrator by an authorized employee of the dealer shall
not disqualify such demonstrator from the exemption herein designated.
H. The sales and use taxes imposed by the state of Louisiana or any of its political
subdivisions shall not apply to the labor, or sale of materials, services, and supplies, used for
repairing, renovating or converting of any drilling rig, or machinery and equipment which
are component parts thereof, which is used exclusively for the exploration or development
of minerals outside the territorial limits of the state in Outer Continental Shelf waters. For
the purposes of this Subsection, "drilling rig" means any unit or structure, along with its
component parts, which is used primarily for drilling, workover, intervention or remediation
of wells used for exploration or development of minerals. For purposes of this Subsection,
"component parts" means any machinery or equipment necessary for a drilling rig to perform
its exclusive function of exploration or development of minerals.
I. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, no sales or use tax of
any taxing authority shall be levied on any advertising service rendered by an advertising
business, including but not limited to advertising agencies, design firms, and print and
broadcast media, or any member, agent, or employee thereof, to any client whether or not the
service also involves a transfer to the client of tangible personal property. However, a
transfer of mass-produced advertising items by an advertising business which manufactures
the items to a client for the client's use, which transfer involves the furnishing of minimal
services other than manufacturing services by the advertising business, shall be a taxable sale
or use of tangible personal property; provided, that in no event shall tax be levied on charges
for creative services which are separately invoiced.
J.(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 9:1149.1 et seq., factory built homes
shall be exempt from sales and use tax imposed by any taxing authority except as provided
in this Subsection.
(2) Forty-six percent of the retail sales price for the initial sale of a new factory built
home from a dealer to a consumer shall be subject to sales and use tax.
(3) Each subsequent resale of a factory built home shall be exempt from sales and
use tax.
(4) For purposes of this Subsection, "factory built home" means a residential
structure which is built in a factory in one or more sections and has a chassis or integrated
wheel delivery system, which is either:
(a) A structure built to federal construction standards as defined in 42 U.S.C. 5402
et seq.
(b) A residential structure built to the Louisiana State Uniform Construction Code.
(c) A manufactured home, modular home, mobile home, or residential mobile home
with or without a permanent foundation, which includes plumbing, heating, and electrical
systems.
(5) "Factory built home" shall not include any self-propelled recreational vehicle or
travel trailer.
(6) The sales and use taxes due pursuant to this Subsection shall be paid to the
Department of Public Safety and Corrections, office of motor vehicles, by the twentieth day
of the month following the month of delivery of the factory built home to the consumer,
along with any other information requested by the office of motor vehicles.
K.(1) Sales and use tax levied by any taxing authority shall not apply to sales for the
purposes of lease or rental of tangible personal property or digital products in an arms-length
transaction.
(2) To qualify for this exemption, sales must be made in strict compliance with rules
and regulations. Any dealer making a sale for lease or rental that is not in strict compliance
with the regulations shall himself be liable for the tax.
(3) Sales of motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers for lease or rental shall comply
with the requirements set forth in R.S. 47:305.36.
L. The lease or rental of motor vehicles by licensed motor vehicle dealers, as defined
in R.S. 32:1252 or vehicle manufacturers as defined in R.S. 32:1252, for their use in
furnishing leased or rented motor vehicles to their customers in performance of their
obligations under warranty agreements associated with the purchase of a motor vehicle or
when the applicable warranty has lapsed and the leased or rented motor vehicle is provided
to the customer at no charge shall be exempt from sales and use taxes levied by any taxing
authority.
Acts 1962, No. 182, §3; Acts 1972, No. 234, §1; Acts 1973, Ex. Sess., No. 13, §1,
eff. Jan. 1, 1974; Acts 1974, No. 186, §1; Acts 1974, No. 627, §1; Acts 1975, No. 200, §1;
Acts 1975, No. 372, §1; Acts 1976, No. 662, §1; Acts 1977, No. 516, §1; Acts 1978, No.
652, §1; eff. Jan. 1, 1979; Acts 1979, No. 145, §1; Acts 1979, No. 796, §1; Acts 1980, No.
159, §1; Acts 1980, No. 710, §1, eff. July 24, 1980; Acts 1983, No. 673, §1, eff. July 1,
1984; Acts 1984, No. 183, §1, eff. July 1, 1984; Acts 1985, No. 258, §1, eff. June 6, 1985;
Acts 1985, No. 530, §1; Acts 1985, No. 901, §1, eff. Sept. 1, 1985; Acts 1986, No. 677, §1;
H.C.R. No. 55, 1986 R.S.; Acts 1987, No. 156, §1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1987, No. 364,
§1, eff. Sept. 1, 1987; Acts 1987, No. 847, §1, eff. July 20, 1987; Acts 1988, No. 948, §1,
eff. Sept. 1, 1988; Acts 1990, No. 155, §1, eff. July 1, 1990; Acts 1990, No. 476, §1, eff. July
18, 1990; Acts 1991, No. 495, §1, eff. July 15, 1991; Acts 1991, No. 1065, §1, eff. Aug. 1,
1991; Acts 1994, No. 18, §2; Acts 1996, No. 29, §1, eff. July 2, 1996; Acts 1998, No. 4, §1,
eff. June 4, 1998; Acts 1998, No. 37, §1, eff. June 24, 1998; Acts 1998, No. 38, §1, eff. June
24, 1998; Acts 2002, No. 4, §1, eff. June 30, 2002; Acts 2002, No. 31, §1, eff. July 1, 2002;
Acts 2002, No. 37, §1, eff. June 25, 2002; Acts 2002, No. 42, §1, eff. July 1, 2002; Acts
2002, No. 62, §1, eff. June 25, 2002; Acts 2002, No. 72, §1, eff. June 25, 2002; Acts 2003,
No. 73, §1, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2007, No. 463, §1, eff. July 1, 2007; Acts 2007, No. 480,
§2; Acts 2009, No. 442, §1, eff. July 1, 2009; Acts 2009, No. 455, §1, eff. July 1, 2009; Acts
2009, No. 473, §1, eff. July 9, 2009; Acts 2013, No. 271, §1, eff. June 13, 2013; Acts 2015,
No. 102, §1, eff. July 1, 2015; Acts 2015, No. 468, §1, eff. July 1, 2015; H.C.R. No. 8, 2015
R.S.; Acts 2019, No. 102, §1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2024, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 10, §1, eff.
Dec. 4, 2024; Acts 2024, 3rd Ex. Sess., No. 11, §§ 2, 4, eff. Dec. 4, 2024; Acts 2025, No.
384, §5, eff. June 20, 2025.
NOTE: Act No. 205 of the 1978 R.S. became effective June 29, 1978. See
Paragraph (D)(6) of this Section.
NOTE: See R.S. 47:302(j) and 331(i) for §305(D)(1)(t).
NOTE: See Acts 2002, No. 4, re (D)(1)(h).
NOTE: See H.C.R. No. 8, 2015 R.S., re: suspension of exemptions in (D)(1)(b),
(c),(d), and (g) for business utilities.