New PPE Sales Tax Exemption for Virginia Businesses

COVID-19 Business Relief: Personal Protective Equipment Sales Tax Exemption

Additional legislation providing relief for Virginia taxpayers became effective on March 11, 2021.  The legislation provides for a temporary sales tax exemption for purchases of personal protective equipment (“PPE”) for businesses complying with the COVID-19 safety protocol defined by the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry in its Emergency Temporary Standards.

The sales tax exemption would apply to PPE defined in the legislation as:

• Disinfecting products approved for use against SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19;
• Coveralls, full body suits, gowns, and vests;
• Gloves;
• Engineering controls such as substitution, isolation, ventilation, and equipment modification to reduce exposure to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 disease-related workplace hazards and job tasks; engineering controls also include UVC sanitation equipment, indoor air quality equipment such as ionization, HEPA filtration, and physical barriers;
• Face coverings, face shields, and filtering facepiece respirators;
• Hand sanitizer;
• Hand-washing facilities;
• HVAC, testing, and physical modifications to comply with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standards 62.1 and 62.2 (ASHRAE 2019a, 2019b);
• Medical and nonmedical masks;
• Physical barriers and electronic sensors or systems designed to maintain or monitor physical distancing of employees from other employees, other persons, and the general public, including acrylic sneeze guards, permanent or temporary walls, electronic employee monitors, and proximity sensors in employee badges;
• Respiratory protection equipment;
• Safety glasses;
• Signs related to COVID-19;
• Temperature-checking devices and monitors; and
• Testing and related equipment related to COVID-19.

Qualifying businesses are defined in the legislation as “a business that has in place a COVID-19 safety protocol.”

The Department of Taxation has issued guidance regarding the exemption legislation. Form ST-13T, the Virginia Sales and Use Tax Certificate of Exemption is now available online.

If you have questions regarding this exemption, please reach out to your Keiter advisor or Email | Call: 804.747.0000.

Additional Tax Resources for Virginia Businesses