Sales tax on labor in Connecticut: taxed on repairs to things, not on new construction; building repairs and installation depend on the job

Other Connecticut pages quoted

• “This publication has been obsoleted by IP 99(19) and AN 2000(8)” — SN 92(23) (CT DRS) — obsolete, page date: 1992

Repairing a thing in Connecticut

Taxed. Repairing or maintaining a thing is a taxable service. Parts and labor must be listed separately, but the whole bill is taxed.

• “Repairing or maintaining units, or their electrical or electronic parts, is a taxable service to tangible personal property.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Contractors providing repair or maintenance services must separately state the charge for integral parts and the charge for maintenance or repair services on the bill to the customer. ... The total bill is taxable.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018

Repairing a home or building in Connecticut

It depends. Work on existing commercial, industrial or income-producing buildings (plumbing, electrical, carpentry, painting, etc.) is taxed. Most of the same work on an owner-occupied home is not. Some services are taxed on every kind of property — maintenance, janitorial, landscaping, snow plowing, window cleaning, carpet cleaning, exterminating, locksmith, house washing, pool cleaning. What it turns on: type of property: owner-occupied home vs. commercial/industrial/income-producing; whether the service is on the taxed-everywhere list.

• “Generally, services to existing commercial, industrial, and income-producing property are taxable. Some services to residential property are also taxable.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Services are generally taxable to existing commercial, industrial, or income-producing property, even if they are not taxable when performed on owner-occupied residential property or new construction.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Some services are taxable in all cases, whether performed on new construction, owner-occupied residential property, existing commercial property, existing industrial property, or existing income-producing property.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “(I) Services to industrial, commercial or income-producing real property, including, but not limited to, such services as management, electrical, plumbing, painting and carpentry, provided income-producing property shall not include property used exclusively for residential purposes in which the owner resides” — Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(a)(37) (Connecticut General Assembly), no date on the page

Installation work in Connecticut

It depends. Installing a system (plumbing system) is not taxed in new construction or an owner-occupied home, but is taxed in existing commercial, industrial or income-producing property. What it turns on: new construction / owner-occupied home (not taxed) vs. existing commercial-type property (taxed)

• “Contractors do not collect tax on their services when installing a system in: New construction Owner-occupied residential property Contractors must collect tax on their services when installing a system in: Existing commercial real property Existing industrial real property Existing income-producing real property” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018

New construction in Connecticut

Not taxed. Construction services on new construction are generally not taxed. Contractors pay tax on their materials. Some services are taxable in all cases, even on new construction (e.g. landscaping).

• “Services are generally taxable to existing commercial, industrial, or income-producing property, even if they are not taxable when performed on owner-occupied residential property or new construction.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Contractors do not collect tax on their services when installing a system in: New construction Owner-occupied residential property Contractors must collect tax on their services when installing a system in: Existing commercial real property Existing industrial real property Existing income-producing real property” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Some services are taxable in all cases, whether performed on new construction, owner-occupied residential property, existing commercial property, existing industrial property, or existing income-producing property.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “(V) Landscaping and horticulture services; (W) Window cleaning services; (X) Maintenance services; (Y) Janitorial services; (Z) Exterminating services; (AA) Swimming pool cleaning and maintenance services;” — Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(a)(37) (Connecticut General Assembly), no date on the page

Listing labor separately on the bill in Connecticut

Does not change the answer.

• “Contractors providing repair or maintenance services must separately state the charge for integral parts and the charge for maintenance or repair services on the bill to the customer. ... The total bill is taxable.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018

Materials on jobs in Connecticut

Contractors are the consumers of materials and supplies used in construction contracts and pay tax when buying them.

• “Contractors are the consumers of materials and supplies used in fulfilling their construction contracts. This means the contractor pays tax on purchases of materials.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018

Trade services Connecticut taxes

The services Connecticut's own pages name as taxed, each in the page's words:

• Carpet cleaning, maintenance, exterminating, snow plowing and removal, house washing, swimming pool cleaning and maintenance, janitorial, landscaping, window cleaning, locksmith services: “Some services are taxable in all cases, whether performed on new construction, owner-occupied residential property, existing commercial property, existing industrial property, or existing income-producing property. These services include, but are not limited to: Carpet cleaning Maintenance Exterminating Snow plowing and removal House washing Swimming pool cleaning Janitorial Swimming pool maintenance Landscaping Window cleaning Locksmith services”
• Air conditioning, paving, carpentry, plastering, carpeting, plumbing and more — on existing commercial/industrial/income-producing property: “Services are generally taxable to existing commercial, industrial, or income-producing property, even if they are not taxable when performed on owner-occupied residential property or new construction. These services include, but are not limited to: Air conditioning Paving Carpentry Plastering Carpeting Plumbing”
• Repair or maintenance of tangible personal property: “Repairing or maintaining units, or their electrical or electronic parts, is a taxable service to tangible personal property.”

Where Connecticut's list of services comes from

• “Repairing or maintaining units, or their electrical or electronic parts, is a taxable service to tangible personal property.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Services are generally taxable to existing commercial, industrial, or income-producing property, even if they are not taxable when performed on owner-occupied residential property or new construction.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “Some services are taxable in all cases, whether performed on new construction, owner-occupied residential property, existing commercial property, existing industrial property, or existing income-producing property.” — IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS), page date: issued 12/19/2018
• “(I) Services to industrial, commercial or income-producing real property, including, but not limited to, such services as management, electrical, plumbing, painting and carpentry, provided income-producing property shall not include property used exclusively for residential purposes in which the owner resides” — Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(a)(37) (Connecticut General Assembly), no date on the page
• “(V) Landscaping and horticulture services; (W) Window cleaning services; (X) Maintenance services; (Y) Janitorial services; (Z) Exterminating services; (AA) Swimming pool cleaning and maintenance services;” — Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(a)(37) (Connecticut General Assembly), no date on the page

What was not checked for Connecticut

• The Connecticut contractor guide used here, IP 2018(2), dates from December 2018; later changes to the law were not checked.
• A 1992 notice that taxed painting, roofing, siding, paving and wallpapering on homes is marked obsolete by DRS. The current statute taxes those trades only on industrial, commercial or income-producing property; its full wording about homes was not read.

Check with the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services

Before you bill: check with the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services. As of November 6, 2026.

This is a plain-words summary of each state's own revenue guidance as of November 6, 2026, not tax advice. Rules have exceptions, and cities and counties can add taxes of their own. Check with the state's tax department, linked on every state's page, before you bill.

Compare Connecticut with every state's answer, or with its neighbours just below.

Next door to Connecticut

• Massachusetts: home repair not taxed, installation depends
• New York: home repair taxed, installation depends
• Rhode Island: home repair not taxed, installation depends

Official sources for Connecticut

• IP 2018(2), Building Contractors' Guide to Sales and Use Taxes (CT DRS) — issued 12/19/2018
• Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-407(a)(37) (Connecticut General Assembly) — no date shown
• SN 92(23) (CT DRS) — obsolete — 1992

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