Sales Tax Obligations of Purchasers in Washington

April 13, 2006

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Washington imposes various requirements on purchasers doing business in Washington. We recommend that you go through the items below to help you with the most frequently asked questions concerning purchasers and sales and use tax issues.

Tax exemption certificates. An exemption certificate may be issued by a purchaser of a nontaxable item. The exemption certificate may be based on the type of transaction (such as a resale exemption) or on the item itself.

Resale exemptions. In Washington property sales for resale in the regular course of business without intervening use are not subject to sales tax. Unless the seller's records clearly show that a transaction was a sale at wholesale, the burden of proving that a sale was not a sale at retail is on the seller. A resale certificate provided by you, the purchaser, to the seller stating that the purchase is for resale in the regular course of business is needed.

Resale exemption certificate. The resale exemption certificate must contain the following information:

your name and address as the buyer
your uniform business identifier or revenue registration number if you are required to register
the type of business you are engaged in
unless you are in a business classification that is authorized by the Department of Revenue to present a blanket resale certificate, the categories of items or services to be purchased for resale
the date on which the certificate was provided
a statement that the items or services were purchased for resale in the regular course of business
a statement that you acknowledge that you as the buyer are solely responsible for purchasing within the categories specified on the certificate and that misuse of the resale or exemption privilege claimed on the certificate subjects you to a penalty of 50 percent of the tax due, in addition to the tax, interest, and any other penalties imposed by law
the name of the individual authorized to sign the certificate
the signature of the authorized individual
the name of the seller

Blanket resale certificates. Sellers may accept blanket certificates from you as a purchaser if you repeatedly purchase the same type of property or service for processing or resale. However, blanket certificates may not be used to purchase property or services not covered by a blanket certificate. A resale certificate that includes the description of the product or services to be purchased as the term "all products and/or services" (or makes a similar designation) is considered a blanket certificate in Washington.

Purchases from out-of-state vendors. Property brought into Washington on which a sales or use tax has been paid in another state equal to or in excess of the Washington tax is not subject to tax in Washington.