Prepaid 911 Charges

A Prepaid 911 charge of four percent (4%) is imposed on the retail sale of a prepaid service capable of providing access to 911 through the use of voice, text, video, image, data, or other means. Unlike traditional telecommunication services, prepaid services that provide access to 911 are not sold or used pursuant to term contracts or subscriptions, and monthly bills are not sent to consumers by prepaid service providers or retail vendors. These services are paid for by consumers in advance and are sold in predetermined units or dollars by a wide variety of general retail locations on a “cash-and-carry” or a “pay-as-you-go” basis.

The 4% charge on prepaid 911 services is effective October 1, 2016, per Act 590 of the 2016 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature. Prior to October 1, 2016, dealers who sold prepaid cellular phones, prepaid cellular phone cards, or additional units of airtime or minutes were required to collect and remit to the Louisiana Department of Revenue (LDR) a two- percent (2%) Prepaid Wireless 911 service charge on the retail sales price of these items.

The service charge must be itemized separately on the invoice, receipt, or similar document provided to the consumer. Note: the prepaid 911 charge is separate from the retail price of the transaction, and is not subject to state and local sales taxes.

This 4% prepaid 911 charge must be collected and remitted electronically to LDR on a quarterly basis. Dealers will file the E911 Service Charge return and remit the payment electronically through the LDR Louisiana Taxpayer Access Point (LaTAP) filing system or by using the services of one of the third-party software vendors listed on the LDR website.

This return must be filed in addition to the general sales tax return normally filed by the dealer

Examples of Prepaid Wireless Services that would incur the service charge include:

1. Wireless telephones that include minutes when purchase
2. Refill minutes for a wireless phone
3. Minutes purchased to be used on wireless telephones

For more information, contact the LDR Customer Service Division at 855.307.3893.

E-mail sales tax questions to [email protected].