In his book 'How to Buy and Sell Gold and Silver Privately,' internet marketer and business coach Doyle Shuler explains many of the complexities surrounding taxation and buying gold. Some states apply sales tax for gold bullion, and others don’t. Some gold buyers are critical of the U.S. government and therefore don’t want their purchase to be noted by the IRS. According to Shuler, simply paying cash isn’t enough to keep you off the grid. By law, precious metals dealers are required to report purchase amounts over $10,000 cash to the IRS. However, they only report the amount of money spent per transaction, not what was bought or who bought it. Shuler recommends paying with a bank wire or check if you’re purchasing more than $10,000 worth of gold in cash since banks don’t report to the IRS.