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Business Taxes Law Guide—Revision 2024

BTLG Table of Contents > Sales and Use Tax Annotations > E > 225.0000 Eyeglasses and Other Ophthalmic Materials > entire section

Sales and Use Tax Annotations


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E

225.0000 Eyeglasses and Other Ophthalmic Materials—Regulation 1592

225.0000 Eyeglasses and Other Ophthalmic Materials—Regulation 1592

225.0040 Contact Lenses. Charges for fitting and training services included in the sale of a set of contact lenses are not subject to sales tax. 6/10/58.

225.0050 Dispensing Opticians. A dispensing optician who transfers eyeglasses to an optometrist or physician who in turn transfers the eyeglasses to his patients is not regarded as dispensing ophthalmic material within the meaning of section 6018 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. Under such circumstances, he is regarded as the retailer rather than the consumer of the eyeglasses and other ophthalmic material he transfers. 1/12/77.

225.0060 Hearing Aids. Hearing aids installed in the frame of eyeglasses are not used in the treatment or correction of the human eye, and, accordingly an oculist or optometrist, who is not also a licensed hearing aid dispenser, is a retailer of such aids and not a consumer thereof. 5/16/55; 9/16/87.

225.0066 Intraocular Molecular Lenses. Intraocular molecular lenses are considered ophthalmic or ocular devices. As such, they are excluded from the definition of "medicine" under section 6369(c)(4) and sales or use tax would apply to their sales to physicians and surgeons and optometrists. 1/3/78.

225.0075 Ophthalmic Materials Furnished Under Insurance. Physicians, surgeons, optometrists, and dispensing opticians are the consumers of ophthalmic materials (eyeglasses, frames, lenses, etc.,) used in the performance of their professional services. Tax applies to the sale of such materials to them regardless of whether payment is made in whole or in part by an unrelated medical insurer. The medical insurer is not the consumer. 4/18/94.

225.0080 Optometrist as Retailer. An optometrist is a retailer of goggles, sunglasses, colored glasses or occupational eye-protective devices, frames and any other tangible personal property which is not "consumed" by the optometrist in performance of professional services in the diagnosis, treatment, or correction of conditions of the human eye. 12/23/65. (Am. 2002–2).

225.0086 Pharmacies—Sale of Contact Lenses. Registered pharmacies are the retailers of contact lenses rather than the consumer. Section 6018 does not include registered pharmacies as consumers of ophthalmic materials furnished in the treatment of human eye conditions. 2/21/96. (Am. 99–2).

(Note.—See amendments to section 6018. Operative January 1, 1998, licensed pharmacists are consumers of replacement contact lenses.)

225.0090 Prescription Spectacles Sold by Manufacturer. A company is in the business of making industrial prescription safety spectacles which it sells directly to operators of industrial plants for use by their employees. While the prescription is obtained by the employees from their optometrists/doctors, the manufacturing company is not a licensed dispensing optical laboratory. Tax applies to sales of prescription spectacles by anyone other than physicians, surgeons, optometrists or licensed dispensing opticians. The sales by the company are therefore taxable. 3/24/95.

225.0100 Regrinding Ophthalmic Lenses. Taxable fabrication labor includes the additional grinding of new lenses necessitated either by an error in the optometrist's prescription or by the patient's finding they are not correct after wearing them for a short period of time. If, however, a new prescription is necessitated after a considerable period of time because of a change of vision, a regrinding of the old lenses constitutes a modification, not a fabrication. The inserting of new lenses in the patient's old frames is non-taxable installation labor. 6/5/59.

225.0115 Sales to the General Public. Sales of ophthalmic materials to the general public by manufacturers of such materials are retail sales subject to tax on the full amount charged. Transfers to patients are exempt only when made by a licensed optometrist, physician and surgeon or a registered dispensing optician. 9/13/94.

225.0120 Scope of Examination. An optometrist who makes a substantial portion of the eye examination, resulting in the particular prescription filled, is the consumer of the materials, the same as when the entire examination is made by him. 6/24/52.

225.0130 Thermal and Chemical Care Units. When thermal care or chemical care units used to clean and sterilize contact lenses are furnished to patients by a physician and surgeon or optometrist as part of the purchase of contact lenses, the physician and surgeon or optometrist will be considered the consumer of the thermal and chemical care units. Tax applies when such units are sold to the physician and surgeon or optometrist. In all other instances, the physician and surgeon or optometrist is the retailer of such units and tax applies to the gross receipts from such retail sales. 1/21/81.

225.0131 Thermal and Chemical Care Units. When thermal and chemical care units are furnished to patients by a physician and surgeon or optometrist as part of the purchase of soft contact lenses furnished in conjunction with professional services, the physician and surgeon or optometrist will be considered the consumer of the thermal and chemical units and tax applies to the sale of the units to the physician and surgeon or optometrist.

When a registered dispensing optician or an optometrist fills a prescription for soft contact lenses prepared by a physician and surgeon or optometrist, and thermal care or chemical care units for soft cell contact lenses are dispensed pursuant to the prescription, the dispensing optician or optometrist will be considered the consumer of such units and tax applies to the selling price of these units to the dispensing optician or optometrist.

In all other cases, the physician and surgeon, optometrist, or dispensing optician is a retailer of such units and tax applies to the gross receipts from the retail selling price of the unit to the patient or customer. Sales of these units by other retailers such as drug stores are likewise subject to tax. 2/9/81; 7/10/96.

225.0135 Thermal and Chemical Care Units Sold by Dispensing Opticians. Dispensing opticians will be accorded the same treatment as physicians and surgeons or optometrists when thermal and chemical care units are dispensed to patients. As such, dispensing opticians are the consumers of thermal and chemical care units they dispense pursuant to a prescription from a physician and surgeon or optometrist for contact lenses. Tax applies when such units are sold to the dispensing optician. In all other instances, the dispensing optician is the retailer of such units and tax applies to the gross receipts from such retail sales. 1/29/81.

225.0140 Tinting of Clear Contact Lenses. Charges for tinting clear contact lenses furnished by doctors is a step in the creation or production of new lenses, and are subject to sales tax. 6/10/93.