To apply for a sales tax ID, go to your state’s department of revenue or tax commission website and complete the online registration, which usually takes under 30 minutes and gives you a permit number the same day. The permit — called a seller’s permit or certificate of authority in most states — authorizes your business to collect sales tax from customers and send it to the state. Five states have no statewide sales tax at all: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon. If your business operates only in those, you don’t need to register. Everywhere else, get the permit before your first taxable sale.
Do You Actually Need One
Any business selling taxable goods or services needs a sales tax ID in each state where it has a tax obligation. That obligation shows up in two ways.
The first is physical presence. An office, a warehouse, employees, or inventory stored in a state all count. If any of those exist, you register there.
The second is economic nexus, and this is where sellers most often miss the mark. In 2018 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in South Dakota v. Wayfair that states can require sales tax collection from businesses with no physical presence, provided the seller has significant economic activity in the state.1Supreme Court of the United States. South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. Roughly 41 states use a $100,000 annual sales threshold. A handful set the bar higher at $250,000 or $500,000, and some also count 200 or more separate transactions as an alternative trigger.2Streamlined Sales Tax. Remote Seller State Guidance Crossing a threshold doesn’t produce a warning letter. You’re expected to know and register on your own.
One boundary worth flagging: if you sell only through Amazon, Etsy, eBay, or a similar marketplace, the platform likely collects and remits sales tax for you under marketplace facilitator laws, which every sales-tax state has adopted. That doesn’t automatically mean you can skip registering. Some states still require marketplace sellers to hold their own permit, and if you also sell through your own website, you handle collection on those direct sales yourself.3Streamlined Sales Tax. Marketplace Facilitator State Guidance The safe move is to register in any state where you have nexus, regardless of what a marketplace handles.p>
What to Gather Before You Start
Have these ready before you open the application. Missing pieces stall the process or force you to start over.
- Your federal Employer Identification Number (EIN). Most states require it for LLCs, partnerships, and corporations. Sole proprietors without employees can use a Social Security number instead. If you don’t have an EIN, you can apply through the IRS website at no cost.4Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number
- Your legal business name and entity type. The name must match what’s on file with your state’s secretary of state. Your entity type affects how liability is assigned to the account.
- Your NAICS code. This six-digit number identifies your primary line of business, and states use it to flag industry-specific rules or exemptions. Look it up on the Census Bureau’s NAICS website.
- Every physical business location. Local tax rates often vary by jurisdiction, so each address determines which rates apply.
- Officer and owner information. For a corporation or LLC, expect to provide names, Social Security numbers, and addresses of all officers, members, or managing partners. States use this to establish personal liability if the business fails to remit collected tax.
- Your estimated start date and monthly sales volume. The start date fixes when your tax obligation begins, and the projected volume helps the state assign a filing frequency.
Some states also ask for articles of incorporation or organization to confirm the entity exists and that you have authority to bind it. Having those on hand before you log in saves real frustration.
Submitting the Application
Nearly every state offers online registration through its department of revenue or tax commission website. You create a user account, verify your identity, complete the application, and electronically sign a declaration that the information is accurate. Many states issue a temporary or permanent tax ID number immediately, so you can start collecting tax the same day.
Paper applications still exist but rarely make sense. Mailed forms go through manual review and can take several weeks. Some states require notarized signatures on paper. Unless you have a specific reason to file that way, online is faster and less error-prone.
Fees and Deposits
Most states charge nothing to register online. A handful charge modest fees, with the full range running from free to about $100. Registration fees are separate from security deposits. Some states require new businesses to post a refundable deposit or surety bond, particularly if the applicant has a history of tax delinquency or operates in a high-risk industry. Deposits can run from $50 to several hundred dollars and are usually refunded once the business establishes a record of timely filing and payment.
Registering in Multiple States
If your business triggers nexus in several states, registering separately in each one gets tedious. The Streamlined Sales Tax Registration System (SSTRS) lets you register in all participating member states through a single free application.5Streamlined Sales Tax. Sales Tax Registration SSTRS Not every state participates, so you may still need to register directly with some, but SSTRS eliminates a chunk of the paperwork for multi-state sellers.
After You Have the Permit
Getting registered is the short part of the job. What follows is filing sales tax returns on time for as long as the permit is active.
Filing Frequency
States assign a filing schedule — monthly, quarterly, or annually — based on how much tax you collect. Higher liability means more frequent filing. Thresholds vary by state, but the pattern is consistent: a new business with modest sales might start on a quarterly schedule and get bumped to monthly as revenue grows. Your state notifies you of the assigned frequency when it issues the permit and can change it later based on your actual collections.
Zero-Dollar Returns
This catches new owners off guard. You must file a return for every period even if you made no taxable sales. A return showing zero tax due is still a required filing. Skipping it because you had no sales triggers late-filing penalties in most states and can eventually lead to your permit being revoked.
Displaying Your Permit
Most states require you to display the sales tax certificate in a visible spot at your place of business. The certificate carries the account number you’ll use for all future filings. For online-only businesses, some states let you keep it on file rather than posting it physically, but you should be able to produce it on request during an audit.
Buying Inventory Tax-Free
Once you’re registered, you can buy inventory for resale without paying sales tax on the purchase. You give your seller’s permit number to the supplier on a resale certificate, and the supplier skips the tax because you’ll collect it from the end customer. The Multistate Tax Commission publishes a Uniform Sales and Use Tax Resale Certificate that many states accept, which lets you list your registration number for each state where you’d receive shipments.6Multistate Tax Commission. Uniform Sales and Use Tax Resale Certificate – Multijurisdiction A few states require their own certificate, so confirm before assuming the uniform version works. Using a resale certificate for personal purchases or items you won’t actually resell is a serious compliance violation, and states audit for it.
What to Know Before You Sign
Personal Liability for Tax You Collect
Sales tax you collect from customers is held in trust for the state. It was never yours. If the business fails to remit it, the state comes after the individuals who controlled the money, not just the company. In most states, corporate officers, LLC members, and anyone with authority over the business’s finances can be held personally liable for unremitted sales tax. That liability survives dissolution, bankruptcy, and simply closing shop. Where several people share fiscal control, liability is usually joint and several, meaning the state can collect the full amount from any one of them. This is why states require the names and Social Security numbers of all officers on the application: they’re building a record of responsible parties from day one.
Successor Liability If You’re Buying a Business
If you’re purchasing an existing business rather than starting one, check whether the seller has unpaid sales tax before closing. In most states, the buyer inherits the seller’s outstanding sales tax debt regardless of what the purchase agreement says. Many states offer a bulk-sale clearance procedure where you notify the tax agency of the pending purchase and request a clearance letter. The agency then either confirms the seller is current or withholds enough from the sale proceeds to cover the debt. Skip that step and you can close on a business only to owe thousands in someone else’s unpaid tax.
Penalties for Skipping Registration
Selling taxable goods without a valid permit is illegal in every state that imposes a sales tax. Consequences range from civil penalties and back taxes with interest to criminal misdemeanor charges in some jurisdictions. Beyond fines, you’ve either been collecting from customers without authority or failing to collect at all and leaving yourself on the hook for the full amount that should have been collected. States are getting better at spotting unregistered sellers, particularly online, using economic nexus rules and marketplace reporting data. Registering voluntarily, even late, typically ends far better than waiting to be caught.