PalletProPalletPro

Reseller guide

Resale certificates and sales tax for liquidation buyers

A resale certificate supports a purchase of goods you intend to resell when it meets the state's rules. It is separate from signing up with a state for sales tax. For liquidation goods, meaning stock a business is clearing out, check which form or permit you need before you bid or pay. This guide is not legal, tax or financial advice.

Plain folders and face-down papers beside unmarked inventory cartons

Separate the buying form from state registration

#

Sales tax is a tax on purchases covered by state and local rules. A resale certificate tells the supplier that the goods meet the state's rules for resale. The supplier keeps that proof in its records and uses the rules to decide the tax on the sale. Use the glossary for plain meanings of the trade terms you meet while buying.

An exemption certificate is a form for claiming that tax doesn't apply for a permitted reason. Resale is one such reason; other reasons have their own rules. State registration means signing up with a state tax agency. A sales tax permit is the authority or account that comes from that process where required.

As of October 2026, the state and SST details below reflect the linked official pages. California Regulation 1668 says that a buyer's permit number alone doesn't relieve the seller of its tax burden. The seller needs a proper form or other proof that meets the rule. Washington uses a state-issued reseller permit, a different form of proof governed by that state.

Use the number and form the relevant state permits. An EIN, or Employer Identification Number, is a federal tax ID. If a form asks for a state sales tax ID, follow its instructions; don't put an EIN there by default. A general business license has a separate purpose too.

Check what you're buying for resale

#

Separate goods you'll resell from supplies and equipment you'll use. Inventory is stock you hold to sell. A pallet is a flat base for shipping goods together, though goods from one pallet may have different later uses.

The Washington permit guidance allows qualifying resale stock while excluding personal-use items and business supplies or equipment, unless a stated exception applies. Check your own state's rules before using resale paperwork for shelving, tools, or other things you intend to keep.

If you'll use some goods and resell others, ask the state agency how to handle them and their charges. Record what you plan to do with each. Buying from a liquidation seller doesn't make everything resale stock.

Before buying, ask which form the supplier accepts, how to send it, and when it's due. Keep a signed copy. Even if the supplier accepts it, check the agency's rules to see whether your business qualifies under state law.

The New York form guidance explains how to use the forms and how sellers accept them. Read the form instructions along with the seller's request. For marketplace purchases, the B-Stock guide and Amazon buying guide explain the buying process. The state decides who can claim the tax break.

Read these state examples as separate systems

#

Start with the state relevant to your purchase, pickup, or delivery. These examples show how the systems differ; check the current form on the state's official site.

New York: ST-120 and state registration

New York's ST-120, revised January 2026, is the resale purchase form. A Certificate of Authority is New York's sales tax registration document. Complete the part of ST-120 that fits your status and qualifying purchase.

The form has separate parts for New York vendors signed up with the state and certain buyers outside New York. For the outside-state options, check whether you must sign up in New York and how you'll resell the goods. Read the full section before using a home-state number.

ST-120 has single-use and blanket forms. Single-use covers one purchase; blanket covers repeat purchases that meet its terms. The form says temporary vendors must use the single-use form. Ask the agency if you can't tell which part applies to your purchase.

California: a number isn't the whole certificate

Under Regulation 1668, the form needs the buyer's signature, name and address, and the required permit details or allowed reason for no permit. It also needs a resale statement and a description of the goods. The rule covers the form's date too.

The statement must include “for resale.” Copy the current official form's wording rather than replacing it with a vague claim that the purchase is exempt. If you aren't required to hold a California permit, check the rule's instructions for the explanation needed in place of that number.

Texas: give the purchase form to the seller

Texas Form 01-339 includes the resale certificate and a separate exemption form. A copy hosted by another Texas state agency shows the same revision. Choose the part that fits the purpose of the purchase. The resale side asks for buyer and seller details, the goods, the buyer's business, and the required ID and signature.

It has fields for the Texas or out-of-state retailer details that apply. Give the completed form to the supplier; don't send it to the Comptroller. Follow the state's rules about who can use it. An out-of-state field isn't approval for every buyer.

Washington: check the issued permit

Washington's reseller permit is issued by the state to eligible businesses. Check its actual effective and expiry dates before using it. The state guidance says sellers need a valid permit or other approved proof for qualifying wholesale sales, meaning sales to businesses buying for resale.

Don't write your own document and assume it replaces the issued permit. If you lack valid proof or have already paid purchase tax, use the state's guidance or contact the agency about the available process. Keep the invoice as part of that inquiry.

Use a multistate form only within its rules

#

SST means Streamlined Sales Tax, a program that coordinates sales tax rules among member states. Its exemption certificate page says the form and instructions are accepted by all 24 member states. It also says not all states allow all exemption reasons on the form, and some require state-specific IDs.

Check which state's rules apply and which ID that state requires. Send the completed form to your supplier and keep a copy. The SST page says not to send exemption certificates to its governing board or to the states.

You can also sign up with states through the Streamlined Sales Tax Registration System, or SSTRS. That is a separate step from using the SST form. SST says you don't have to sign up through SSTRS just to use the form. Check your duty to sign up with each state on its own.

The SST registration FAQ explains that signing up brings filing duties in the states you select. Returns are reports of sales and tax, distinct from goods returned by a buyer. Once you sign up, states generally expect reports each period, even when there is no tax to report. Some states have exceptions. Read those duties before signing up broadly to get a buying form.

Find the authority for your purchase

#

Start with the SST state tax contact directory. It links to state authorities, including states outside the member program. A directory link helps you find the agency; it doesn't tell you that the state accepts a particular form.

When a supplier asks for tax paperwork:

  1. Note the seller's location, pickup or delivery address, and where you run your business.
  2. Open the relevant state agency's site and search for resale certificate, seller's permit, or reseller permit.
  3. Read the current form and instructions, including outside-state buyer rules and required IDs.
  4. Check separate duties for sales to your own buyers, including local sales and marketplace sales.
  5. Ask the agency about facts the instructions don't cover, and save its answer with the purchase.

Nexus is a connection with a state that can create tax duties. Your location, sales, and other activities may need review under that state's rules. Give the agency the full facts about your business rather than asking only whether a form exists.

Recheck forms before using them again. Changes to your business name, address, permit status, or purchase purpose can affect the details needed. Check government fees and steps on official sites; a paid third-party service has its own charge.

Marketplace tax collection leaves other questions

#

A marketplace facilitator is a platform that handles sales or payments. Under the rules that apply, it collects tax on covered sales through the platform. Your buying form and any direct local sales still need their own review.

Texas's online sales guidance says Texas marketplace sellers still need their sales tax permit and timely returns even when they sell only through a marketplace provider. The provider must certify that it is handling tax collection and payment. This is a Texas rule, not a filing answer for every state.

Keep marketplace reports beside direct-sale records and ask your state how to report each. If you also sell at a bin store, garage sale, or by local pickup, include those activities in the question. The beginner guide explains how to link purchases to item outcomes.

Keep the certificate linked to its invoices

#

Save the signed form or permit copy, supplier's acceptance, and purchase invoice. Note the state, buyer ID, covered goods, signing date, and any expiry date. Set a reminder for the permit's actual expiry; documents don't all last the same time.

A blank clipboard and plain carton on a tidy desk beside a file box

Keep records for the relevant state's period. New York's certificate guidance says to keep it for at least three years from the due date of the return reporting the last sale covered. The current ST-120 instructions also say to count from the filing date if that is later than the due date. Washington's guidance requires proof of wholesale sales for five years after the sale. These are separate state examples.

If you take an item out of resale stock to use yourself, record its purchase ID, cost, date, and new use. Use tax is tax that can apply when taxable goods are used without the required purchase tax having been paid. California's rule addresses tax when resale goods are later used. New York's ST-120 also warns that use of goods bought for resale can require tax payment.

Check the state's treatment of business use, personal use, gifts, and discarded goods before deciding what tax is due. An item leaving your stock is a recordkeeping event; its tax treatment needs the state's rules. The landed-cost guide explains how to keep purchase tax in your cost figures where it is charged.

Record goods you keep instead of resell

#

When an item moves from resale stock to personal use, keep that change beside the original purchase. A notebook or spreadsheet works. PalletPro lets you record item write-offs, meaning items removed from resale stock, including personal use, donation, and discard. Keep the tax agency's answer in your own records when deciding the tax treatment; see the app.

Sources

#

Updated

More guides

All guides