The Massachusetts Appellate Tax Board recently granted summary judgment to a taxpayer challenging the Department of Revenue’s sales tax economic nexus policy for the nine months preceding the US Supreme Court’s Wayfair decision. As a result of the decision, taxpayers may wish to review their compliance history in Massachusetts and where appropriate seek abatement of tax for pre-Wayfair periods. [U.S. Auto Parts Network, Inc. v. Commissioner of Revenue, Mass. App. Tax Bd., Docket No. C339523, 1/28/21]
The Board’s decision is the first to grant taxpayer relief from the Department’s continuing application of its ‘cookie nexus’ theory for sales taxes prior to the US Supreme Court’s Wayfair decision. The Department is expected to appeal, and taxpayers should consider their options for preserving their refund rights for this nine-month period in light of Massachusetts’ statute of limitations and abatement procedures.
