WI resident buying a boat in IL

I'm a Wisconsin resident and buying a boat from a dealer in Illinois.  Do I pay Illinois sales tax or do they fill out a tax exempt form and I pay tax to Wisconsin when I register it?  I know if I pay tax in Illinois I won't have to pay it to Wisconsin too.  Just trying to save a few bucks and give the government as little money as possible.

If is a private sale , you just pay sales tax in Wi when registering  ?

I thought it was reciprocal last time i was shoping for one since i lived in wisconsin that was the tax i had to pay 5.5 instead of 7.5 but its been a few years mite hav changed

Apparently their law has changed over the years. I bought four new boats from a dealer in Chicago and did not pay any tax. I paid the taxes, title and licensing fees to Wisconsin when I registered it. They gave me a title of origin for the trailer, but I did not have to register it in Wisconsin due to the weight.

Unfortunately you would have only had to pay 5.5% in Wisconsin. Maybe they adjust that when you register it here, or you can claim the overage on your state income taxes.

I bought a boat two years ago out of Illinois and it is easy. They collect tax when you send your reg. in for WI send old title and mark paid tax to out of state. DONE!!!!!

Do you have to reg. your trailer also?

I remember having the 7 day trailer plate to get it out of Illinois.

Your dealer just wanted it easy for him. If the boat is delivered to WI you do not have to pay IL tax. If you take delivery in IL you will pay the tax. Just went through it myself a few months ago.

Not too surprising IL wants their cut, plus simplifies for the business 

Would you mind letting us know how registration goes?  Thanks 

Update.  Went down there yesterday.  When buying a boat through a dealership, Illinois does not allow watercraft to be bought tax exempt.  I had to pay tax to Illinois (7%). 

I bought several boats over the years in Illinois. I paid the ENTIRE sales tax when registering in Wisconsin. If you pay more sales tax in Illinois, you will not be credited back by Wisconsin. If you pay less in Illinois than the Wisconsin rate, you will have to pay the balance to Wisconsin.

Well, that didn't take long.. here's the reply

"Good evening,

So it seems that the fisherman in question already knows that he would either pay the tax to WI or IL. If he were to pay it to IL then when registering in WI he would select the Tax-Exempt code for “Taxes paid to another state”. In regards to what’s the cheaper route to go, I am unsure due to not knowing the tax rates in IL. If you follow this link and scroll down you will see the tax rates in the state of WI listed by county. Please let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Thank you,

DeVante N."

This was the link provided 

www.revenue.wi.gov/Pages/FAQS/pcs-taxrates.aspx

Registration info

dnr.wi.gov/permits/registrationandtitling.html

might want to contact DNR, they should be able to help you and tell you what to do, forms, etc... phone, chat, email

dnr.wi.gov/contact/

,,,I emailed your question and will post reply when I get

You should only pay taxes in WI. 

One tip. Make sure you have the boat on a separate bill of sale with out any other items. When you register the boat you will only have to pay tax on the boat.