Sport fishing and archery excise tax

Individuals may be responsible for paying the excise tax and filing an excise tax return if they purchase sport fishing or archery equipment from outside of the United States, including through online purchases directly from foreign manufacturers or sellers. An importer is responsible for paying the excise tax on the sport fishing or archery equipment that it imports into the United States. An individual does not need to be in the business of importing or selling sport fishing or archery equipment in order to be liable for the excise tax.

This page offers guidance to help an individual understand when the individual is an importer of sport fishing or archery equipment and how to file and pay the sport fishing and archery excise tax.

On this page

• Who qualifies as an importer
• Who must file
• Ways to file
• When to file
• How to file
• Tax liability for sport fishing and archery
• Related

Who qualifies as an importer

An “importer” of sport fishing or archery equipment includes an individual consumer who purchases sport fishing or archery equipment for personal use if the equipment is purchased from outside the United States directly from a foreign manufacturer or seller. An individual does not need to be in the business of importing or selling sport fishing or archery equipment to be liable for the tax.

Who must file

You must file if:

• You were liable for, or responsible for collecting, any of the federal excise taxes listed on Form 720 Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return, Parts I and II, for a prior quarter and you haven’t filed a final return; or
• You are liable for, or responsible for collecting, any of the federal excise taxes listed on Form 720, Parts I and II, for the current quarter.

Ways to file

You can report your excise tax liability in these ways:

1. File online with an IRS-approved software provider for faster service and confirmation.
2. Mail Form 720 to Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Ogden, UT 84201-0009

When to file

You must file a return for each quarter of the calendar year as follows.

Quarter covered	Due by
Jan., Feb., March	April 30
April, May, June	July 31
July, Aug., Sept.	Oct. 31
Oct., Nov., Dec.	Jan. 31

For due dates that fall on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, you may file the return on the next business day.

When filing online, your return is considered filed immediately when submitted. If you mail, post it by the due date using the U.S. Postal Service or a designated private delivery service. Penalties and interest will be added if you file or pay after the due date. Late filing and late payment penalties and interest apply after the due date.

How to file

1. Report tax or indicate no tax
   • If you are not reporting a tax you usually report, enter zero on the appropriate line in Part 1 or 2 of Form 720.
   • If you have no tax to report at all, enter “none” on Part 3, Line 3, and sign and date the return.
2. Filing requirements
   • You must have an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to file Form 720.
3. Adjustments for previous quarter
   • If you need to adjust liabilities from previous quarters, use Form 720-X, Amended Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return—do not enter adjustments on Form 720.
4. Include additional sheets
   • If you attach additional sheets, make sure to include your name and EIN on each page.

Tax liability for sport fishing and archery

See Publication 510, Excise Taxes for full list of taxable sport fishing equipment.

Equipment	Tax liability
Sport fishing equipment (other than fishing rods and fishing poles)	10% of sales price
Fishing rods and fishing poles (limits apply, see instructions)	10% of sales price
Electric outboard motors	3% of sales price
Fishing tackle boxes	3% of sales price
Bows, quivers, broadheads, and points	11% of sales price
Arrow shafts *	$.63 per shaft

* Arrow shaft rates change annually. See current Form 720 for rate.

Related

Excise tax

Excise tax forms and publications