Do private sellers need to register or collect use tax when selling gold or silver in Washington?
Executive summary
Starting Jan. 1, 2026 Washington will treat sales of “precious metal bullion” and “monetized bullion” as taxable retail sales, which means sellers who are engaged in retailing may owe retailing B&O tax and must collect retail sales tax when required by law [1] [2]. Current DOR guidance still recognizes exemptions for some coin and currency transactions but the legislature’s 2025 changes remove the longstanding broad exemption for bullion, with vendors and dealers warning of sales-tax rates roughly equal to the state rate (6.5%) plus local surtaxes [1] [3].
1. New law flips the tax treatment of bullion in Washington
The 2025 legislative package (ESSB 5794 / related bills) changes longstanding rules so that, effective Jan. 1, 2026, gross income from sales of precious metal bullion (bars, processed nuggets, etc.) and monetized bullion (coins used as money) “are taxable as sales of tangible personal property” rather than automatically excluded from retailing or wholesaling classifications [1] [2].
2. What the Department of Revenue says sellers must watch
Washington DOR material explains that until the statutory change a sale of precious metal bullion was generally exempt from retail sales tax and retailing B&O tax; under the new law those sales will be taxable and commissions remain subject to service-and-other-activities B&O tax [2] [4]. The DOR’s special-notice language specifically flags that beginning Jan. 1, 2026, sales of these items are no longer excluded from the definition of wholesale or retail sales [1].
3. Does a private person who occasionally sells a coin need to register or collect tax?
Available sources do not set out a single bright‑line rule for casual private sellers versus registered dealers. DOR guidance addresses “gross income from sales” and retailing classifications, and media reporting and industry analyses focus on dealers and businesses that sell bullion and coins [2] [5]. That suggests tax and registration obligations will depend on whether the seller’s activity rises to a business (retailing) rather than a one-off private sale — but the provided sources do not detail thresholds for casual sellers (not found in current reporting).
4. Practical consequence for dealers and businesses: collect and remit
Industry and local reporting interpret the change as meaning dealers should begin collecting sales tax on bullion transactions after the effective date; the expected tax base is the standard state rate (6.5%) plus applicable local rates, which many outlets estimate can push the effective tax near 8–10% in some areas [3] [6]. Industry groups (e.g., coin dealers) publicly opposed the repeal, warning of competitive and market impacts [7] [8].
5. Which items remain treated differently under DOR rules
DOR pages still draw distinctions: paper currency sold or exchanged as legal tender remains exempt from retailing B&O and retail sales tax, and coins that cannot be used as money may remain subject to retailing B&O and sales tax under existing guidance — the legislative changes focus on removing the broad bullion exclusion so many items previously untaxed will now be taxed [5] [4].
6. Conflicting messages in secondary sources — read the statute and DOR guidance
Trade and advocacy sites stress that the exemption repeal takes effect January 1, 2026, and warn purchasers will pay standard tax rates [6] [8]. Other materials published earlier or interpreting different bills (e.g., bills aiming to create a “sound money” framework) show there was legislative activity both expanding protections and repealing exemptions in 2025 — readers should rely on the enacted bill language and updated DOR pages for compliance [9] [1].
7. What you should do next if you plan to sell bullion in Washington
If you are a dealer or make repeated sales, plan to register for business tax accounts, collect retail sales tax where required, and remit retailing B&O tax consistent with DOR instructions after Jan. 1, 2026; DOR notices explicitly direct sellers of precious metal bullion to treat such sales as taxable [1] [2]. For occasional private sellers, available sources do not provide explicit exemption thresholds or safe-harbor language — consult the enacted statute and the department’s transactional guidance or seek professional tax advice because the reporting distinguishes business (retailing) activity from casual sales (not found in current reporting; see p1_s2).
Limitations and transparency: this analysis relies solely on the provided sources. The Department of Revenue pages [1] [2] [5] are the controlling public explanations cited here, and industry reporting [6] [3] [8] interprets likely tax rates and market impacts. If you want, I can extract the exact statutory text or DOR publication language cited above and quote the operative lines so you can confirm registration thresholds and definitions.