Pennsylvania does not have a personal property tax in the ongoing, annual sense. You will not receive a yearly bill based on the value of your car, boat, furniture, or business equipment. The state is one of only seven that fully exempt tangible personal property from recurring taxation.1Tax Foundation. States Should Continue to Reform Taxes on Tangible Personal Property Personal property does get taxed in two specific situations: once at the point of sale through the 6% sales and use tax, and again at death through the state’s inheritance tax.
No Annual Tax on Cars, Boats, or Household Goods
No Pennsylvania county or municipality can impose an annual property tax on movable goods. The exemption covers both personal and business assets, so commercial equipment and machinery are also free from recurring assessments.2Tax Foundation. Tangible Personal Property De Minimis Exemptions by State
That puts Pennsylvania well apart from many states where owning a $40,000 truck can mean $400 to $800 a year in vehicle property tax, usually bundled into registration renewal. Pennsylvania residents skip that entirely.
Sales and Use Tax at the Point of Purchase
Instead of taxing ownership year after year, Pennsylvania collects on the transaction. The state sales tax is 6%.3Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 7202 – Imposition of Tax Allegheny County adds 1%, and Philadelphia adds 2%, making the combined rate there 8%.4Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Sales, Use and Hotel Occupancy Tax
If you buy from an out-of-state seller that doesn’t collect Pennsylvania sales tax, you owe use tax at the same 6% rate.5Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax Bulletin 2018-01 – Marketplace Sales Smaller use tax amounts can be reported on your annual PA-40 return, but that option doesn’t cover vehicles, boats, ATVs, snowmobiles, or items flagged by a Notice of Potential Use Tax Due. Those are paid directly to the Department of Revenue.6Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Use Tax for Individuals
Several major categories of personal property are exempt from sales tax entirely: most everyday clothing and footwear (formal wear, fur garments, and sport-specific apparel are still taxable), groceries for home consumption (restaurant meals and prepared foods are not), and prescription and non-prescription drugs along with wheelchairs, prosthetics, eyeglasses, and other therapeutic equipment.7Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 7204 – Exclusions From Tax
Vehicle Registration Fees Are Flat, Not Value-Based
Because Pennsylvania doesn’t tax vehicles annually on value, PennDOT charges flat fees. A brand-new luxury SUV and a 15-year-old sedan cost the same to register. As of 2026:8Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Bureau of Motor Vehicles Schedule of Fees
- Annual passenger vehicle registration: $489Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Payments and Fees
- Certificate of title (new or transfer): $72
- Registration plate transfer: $11
You will still owe the 6% sales tax (or use tax for out-of-state purchases) when you first title a vehicle. After that, the annual cost stays the same regardless of what the car is worth.
When Mobile Homes Become Real Property
Mobile homes are the one place personal property can cross into taxable real estate. Under Pennsylvania’s Consolidated County Assessment Law, a mobile or manufactured home is treated as real property, and taxed like any traditional home, once it is permanently attached to land or connected to utilities such as water, sewer, or electric.10Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 5020-201 – Subjects of Taxation Enumerated
After reclassification, the county assessor assigns a market value and the home falls under the same millage rates as stick-built houses in that school district and municipality. If you disagree with the assessment, you can appeal to the county board of assessment appeals, and from there to the court of common pleas.11New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 5020-518.1 – Appeal to Court From Assessments
Inheritance Tax on Personal Property
Pennsylvania will not tax your personal property while you own it, but it does tax the transfer of that property at death. The inheritance tax applies to all tangible personal property owned by a resident at death, including cash, vehicles, furniture, antiques, and jewelry.12Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. What Property Is Subject to Inheritance Tax?
Rates depend on the relationship between the person who died and the person who inherits:13Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 9116 – Inheritance Tax
- Surviving spouse: 0%
- Children aged 21 or younger: 0%
- Adult children and other lineal descendants: 4.5%
- Siblings: 12%
- Everyone else, including nieces, nephews, friends, and unmarried partners: 15%
- Charitable organizations: exempt
Property owned jointly between spouses is exempt.14Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Inheritance Tax For property owned jointly with anyone else, the decedent’s fractional share is taxable. If that joint interest was created within one year of death, the full value gets taxed rather than the fractional share.15Montgomery County, PA. Inheritance Tax for Pennsylvania Residents
A concrete example: $200,000 in personal property left to an adult child triggers $9,000 in inheritance tax. The same property left to a sibling costs $24,000. Pennsylvania has no separate estate tax, so this is the only death-related levy on personal property.13Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 9116 – Inheritance Tax
The Old Intangibles Tax Is Effectively Dead
Pennsylvania once imposed a county-level tax on financial assets like stocks, bonds, and interest-bearing accounts under the four mill tax.16Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 4821 – Four Mill Tax on Loans, Credits, Securities for County and City Purposes The statute is still on the books, but the tax no longer functions.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Fulton Corp. v. Faulkner struck down North Carolina’s intangibles tax for violating the Commerce Clause.17Justia U.S. Supreme Court Center. Fulton Corp. v. Faulkner, 516 U.S. 325 The Pennsylvania Supreme Court then held in Annenberg v. Commonwealth that the stock portion of the state’s personal property tax facially discriminated against interstate commerce and was unconstitutional.18FindLaw. Annenberg v. Commonwealth Counties technically retain the authority to impose and collect the tax,19Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 4821.1 – Authority for Imposition and Collection of Taxes but none do in any meaningful way. You do not need to report investment portfolios to your county assessor.