Noun

Singular tax stamp

Plural tax stamps

tax stamp (plural tax stamps)

1. Adhesive stamp used to pay tax rather than postage, sometimes used on official documents.

A revenue stamp, tax stamp or fiscal stamp is a stamp used to collect taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, and many other things.

Description

Revenue stamps are stamps used to collect taxes and fees. They are issued by Governments, national and local, and by official bodies of various kinds. They take many forms and may be gummed and ungummed, peforated or imperforate, printed or embossed, and of any size. In many countries, they are as detailed in their design as banknotes and they are often made from the same type of paper. The high value of many revenue stamps means that they may contain security devices to prevent counterfeiting.

History

The use of revenue stamps goes back further than that of postage stamps (first used in 1840); the stamps of the Stamp Acts of the 18th century were revenues. Their use became widespread in the 19th century, partly inspired by the success of the postage stamp, and partly motivated by the desire to streamline government operations, the presence of a revenue stamp being an indication that the item in question had already paid the necessary fees. Revenue stamps have become less commonly seen in the 21st century, with the rise of computerization and the ability to use numbers to track payments accurately.

There are a great many kinds of revenue stamps in the world, and it is likely that some are still uncataloged. Both national and local entities have issued them. In certain periods government have combined the uses of postage and revenue stamps, calling them "postal fiscals" or inscribing them "Postage and Revenue".