In Wisconsin, the sales tax treatment of coins and currency depends on what you are selling:
- Precious metal bullion (gold, silver, platinum, palladium coins, bars, rounds, or sheets that meet the legal definition): Exempt from Wisconsin sales tax. The exemption applies to qualifying bullion containing at least 35% gold, silver, copper, platinum, or palladium and that is marked with weight, purity, and content (or minted by a government authority based on those factors).
- Collector coins and currency sold above face value: Generally taxable in Wisconsin. For example, collectible coins, paper money, tokens, or numismatic items sold for more than face value are typically subject to the state sales tax unless another exemption applies.
- Face-value U.S. currency transactions (ordinary money exchange) are generally not treated the same as collectible sales.
Wisconsin's current state sales tax rate is 5% state sales tax plus applicable local taxes (many locations add a 0.5% county tax, and some municipalities have additional taxes), so a taxable coin show sale may commonly be 5.5% or higher depending on location.
