The Personal Property Tax Relief Act (PPTRA) was signed into law in May, 1998. This historic tax relief program was the first of its kind in the country and provides tax relief on the first $20,000 of value for qualifying vehicles.
A vehicle must meet all three of the requirements below to qualify for tax relief:
Be a passenger car, pickup or panel truck weighing less than 7,501 pounds, or a motorcycle; and
Be (a) owned by a natural person, or (b) leased by a natural person under a contract requiring such person to pay the tangible personal property tax, or (c) held in a private trust; and
NOT be used for business purposes.
Business vehicles DO NOT qualify for PPTRA.
Business vehicle = used over 50% of the time for business purposes OR vehicles for which a business vehicle tax deduction (depreciation and other expenses) have been claimed on the federal income tax return of a business or individual by the filing of a Schedule C - Form 1040/Profit or Loss from Business, Form 2106 - Employee Business Expenses, or Form 4562 - Depreciation and Amortization Schedule.
In general, the Commissioner of the Revenue county where the vehicle is garaged has the authority to determine the amount of tax relief on qualified vehicles and reports such qualifying vehicles to the Treasurer of the locality.
Vehicles qualified for tax relief are noted on your tax bill and show a reduction for the portion of the tax the Commonwealth will pay. For qualified vehicles, your tax bill is reduced by the applicable tax relief percentage for the tax year on the first $20,000 of value.
If your qualifying vehicle's assessed value is $1,000 or less, your tax has been eliminated and the Commonwealth's share is 100%. A percentage is calculated each year for a vehicle's assessed value between $1,001 and $20,000.
No state payment is made toward any tax on the portion of a qualifying vehicle's value over $20,000. Taxpayers are responsible for the percentage remaining on values up to $20,000 plus all of the tax on values over the first $20,000.
