Some US Consumers to Be Reimbursed for ‘Tampon Tax’

Two remaining boxes of Tampax tampons are seen on a shelf at a store in Washington on June 14, 2022. Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Some American consumers paying sales tax on menstrual products, including tampons, pads, and menstrual cups, across 21 states will be able to get that tax reimbursed starting from Oct. 11.

The move comes after multiple producers of feminine hygiene products came together to form a joint partnership known as the “Tampon Tax Back Coalition" aimed at preventing women from having to fork out extra in-state sales tax when buying the essential items.

The eight brands in the partnership include August, Cora, Lola, The Honey Pot, Rael, Here We Flo, Saalt, and DIVA.

According to the coalition’s official website, the reimbursement will apply to products purchased across eight of the participating brands.

To get their money back, customers must sign up via the official website, take a photo of their receipt within 10 days of purchasing menstrual products, and send it to the coalition.

Customers will then be repaid the tax by Venmo or PayPal within 48 hours, according to the coalition.

While there is no specific tax for women’s menstrual products per se, each state collects a certain amount on the retail purchase of such products, which are often classed as luxury items instead of basic necessities, according to the Alliance for Period Supplies.

Tampons Considered ‘Luxury Goods’

The amount of tax imposed varies from state to state, although five states do not impose a sales tax and 24 have already removed the sales tax on menstrual products. According to the coalition, the tax on women’s menstrual products is highest in Oklahoma and Alabama—11.5 percent.

South Dakota has the lowest tax on women’s menstrual products at 4.5 percent, according to the coalition.

Speaking to NBC’s “Today Show,” Nadya Okamoto, co-founder of August, one of the members of the coalition, explained that while many states recognize women’s menstrual products as “luxury goods,” many other non-essential items, including men’s hair products and even motor vehicles, are not subject to the tax.

“A lot of the long-term goal, end goal of this [coalition] is to change public opinion and get people to know that periods are natural, period products are necessities, and we need to take down the tampon tax because it sets a very dangerous legal precedent,” Ms. Okamoto said.

The coalition members will also be paying out of their “own pockets” to reimburse customers, they said.

‘Unfair, Discriminatory Economic Burden’

“We really wanted to put our money where our mouth is with this coalition,” Ms. Okamoto said. “A lot of it is about us not just saying, ‘Hey, we don’t agree with the tampon tax,’ we will Venmo, Paypal you back within a couple of business days because we don’t think you should pay this. ... We’re gonna eat into our margins because it’s worth it and it’s a no-brainer,” she said.

According to the Duquesne University School of Nursing, the average woman spends around $1,773 on period products in her lifetime, while sales from feminine hygiene products average around $6 billion a year in the United States and $40 billion worldwide.

The annual cost of the taxes to consumers comes in at around $80.1 million, according to Period Law, a bipartisan nonprofit that advocates for women’s health initiatives, including what it calls the “unfair and discriminatory economic burden” of the “tampon tax.”

Several states have recently passed legislation that would stop women from having to pay the “tampon tax” on an array of feminine menstrual products, including Virginia, Iowa, Colorado and Nebraska.

In June, Texas became the latest state to do so when it passed a bill exempting period products from such taxes. That legislation went into effect on Sept. 1.

An estimated one in four women in the United States struggle to afford period products, according to Period.org, while 44 percent of American teens reported stress and embarrassment due to a lack of access to period products.