Taxes

Below are the most common taxes a small business or business owner may be required to pay listed by the agencies that assess them. Your business may be eligible for a tax credit or incentive for certain business activities. Agencies offering tax credits are included below.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Tax Incentives​ and deductions

Idaho Department of Commerce

• Tax Incentives
• Idaho Foreign Trade Zone – FTZ 280

Idaho Department of Insurance

• Hospital and Professional Service Corporation Tax – Paid by hospitals and professional service corporations that self-fund their insurance coverage
• Insurance Premium Tax – Paid by insurance companies except workers comp insurance providers who pay their tax to the Idaho Industrial Commission.
• Self-funded Employee Health Care Plans – Premium Tax Registration Requirements
• Association Health Plans
• Title Insurance Companies – Premium Tax
• Regulation and guidance by type of insurance

Idaho Department of Labor

• Unemployment Insurance Tax (a tax, not insurance)
• Work Opportunity Tax Credit

Idaho Industrial Commission

• Workers Compensation Premium Tax – Paid by insurance companies that offer workers comp insurance
• Self-insured Employer Premium Tax – Paid by companies that self-insure workers comp coverage (only available to very large corporations). Contact your nearest IIC office for details.

Idaho State Tax Commission

• Amusement Device and Vending Machine Annual Decal Fee
• Beer and Wine Taxes
• Business Taxpayer Self-service – change your address, business name, cancel permits and more
• Cigarette and Tobacco Taxes
• Controlled Substance Tax Stamp –  Illegal Drug Tax
• Changing information or Cancelling permit accounts
• Electricity (Kilowatt Hour) Tax
• Farming and ranching – exemption certificate and production exemption
• Fiduciary Tax
• Fuels Taxes and Fees
• Mine License Tax
• Motor Vehicles – Farming and Ranching
• New Businesses – Getting Tax Permits
• Oil and Gas Production Tax
• Operating Property Tax – public utilities, railroads
• Permanent Building Fund Tax – individuals and businesses pay a $10 per year tax
• E911 Prepaid Wireless Service Fee
• Tax Preparers – useful handbooks
• Travel and Convention Tax
• Vacation Rentals/AirBnB/Short-term Lodging Tax
• Successor’s Liability Clearance Letter – secured when a business changes ownership to determine whether the business has outstanding tax obligations

• Estimated Taxes – Business Income Taxes 
• Estimated Taxes – Individuals – Payments are optional

• Income Tax – Business
• Income Tax – Corporations
• Income Tax – S-Corporations
• Income Tax – Partnerships and LLCs who report taxes like a partnership
• Income Tax – Fiduciaries
• Income Tax – Interstate Trucking Companies
• Income Tax – Individual
• Income Tax – Military members and spouses – resident and non-resident
• Income Tax Withholding Account – Establishing
• Income Tax Withholding – Out of State Companies with employees working or living in Idaho
• Income Tax Withholding – Types of Employees (domestic, family member, corporation officer, farm/ranch)

• Sales Tax – apply for a permit – form IBRS
• Multi-Jurisdiction Uniform Sales and Use Tax Resale Certificate – Accepted in 36 states
• Non-profits/Charities/Religious Groups
• Sales and Use Tax permit (reseller’s permit)
• Temporary Sales Tax Permit
• Sales Tax Resale or Exemption Certificate – ST-101 and Information for ST-101
• Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – contractors who improve real property – ST-103C
• Sales tax – military personnel
• Sales tax – Restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Food, Meals and Drink Guide
• Sales tax – promoter sponsored events
• Sales tax – recreation and admission fees
• Sales tax – online sellers
• Sales tax – boats, trailers and other watercraft – sales and rentals
• Sales tax – firearms transfer fees and taxes
• Sales tax – yard sales, garage/rummage sales
• Auditorium Districts Local Sales Tax (Boise, Idaho Falls, Pocatello/Chubbuck)
• Local Option city sales tax – collected by 21 resort cities
• Local Option county sales tax – currently no Idaho counties collect this tax
• Use tax – paid by businesses who purchase products tax-free and consume them in the course of doing business rather than reselling them and collecting sales tax
• Wholesalers

Internal Revenue Service

• Self-employed/Independent Contractors
• Farmers/Fishermen

• Business
• Personal – including independent contractors, sole proprietors and partners
• Armed Forces personnel
• Farmers and Fishermen
• Payments to independent contractors
• Gig Economy Tax Center – Those who earn income from activities such as Uber, Lyft, short term rentals, internet sales and more and who do not receive a W-2 or 1099 are called “gig workers.”
• Profit or Loss From Supplemental Income – 1040-E

Employer Identification Number (EIN)

• Employer Identification Number (EIN) – establishing
• Employer Identification Number – cancelling
• Employer Identification Number – Lost or Misplaced
• Employer Identification Number – theft or fraud
• Understanding Your EIN

• Affordable Care Act Tax Provisions
• Agricultural or Horticultural Tax-exempt Organization
• Business Address or Responsible Party Change – Form 8822-B; businesses must keep their address current.
• Business Name Change
• Deducting Business Expenses
• Excise Tax
• Fuel Tax (a form of Excise tax)
• Heavy Highway Use Vehicle Tax Return
• Hiring Household (Domestic) Employees
• Hobby Business
• Medicare and Social Security Taxes (FICA)
• Non-profits/Charities
• Outsourcing Payroll and Third Party Payers
• Self-employment Tax
• Tax Credits/Incentives
• Taxpayer Identification Number (EIN)
• Unemployment Tax – Federal
• Paid Tax Preparer Identification Number – PTIN

Small Business Administration

Foreign taxes, duties and tariffs – information for exporters

Section 179

Depreciation Deduction on qualified equipment purchases

U.S. Department of Labor

Tax Incentives for Employers
Fact Sheet: Returning Heroes and Wounded Warrior Tax Credits

U.S. Department of the Treasury Alcohol & Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB)

Alcohol, Cigarette and Tobacco, Firearms and Ammunition Tax

Property Tax (real estate and personal property)

Property taxes are established and collected by individual counties and taxing districts, not by the state. The collected funds are used to finance local services, such as roads, schools and libraries. Two types of property tax are collected.

Personal property tax is assessed on the value of depreciable assets owned by a business, including machinery, equipment, office equipment, software and more. The tax is paid annually or semi-annually in December and June to your local county assessor. The first $100,000 of a business’s personal property is exempt from taxation.

Real estate property tax is collected on the assessed value of real estate (real property) owned by a business or an individual. Real estate taxes are paid annually or semi-annually in December and June to your local county assessor.

Important: Personal property tax is not in any way related to income tax. If you own a business, you may owe property tax. The tax must be paid even if your business has no income or does not owe income tax. Failure to pay property tax can result in a lien being filed against business real estate and/or equipment.

For additional information, see the Property Tax Hub and Property Tax Forms & Guides on the Idaho State Tax Commission’s website.