Texas Resale Certificate: Fill & Download for Free

That would be a great business opportunity for someone to take on. I did a quick Google search and found none. But you would have to structure your terms of use in such a way as to limit liability. If you say someone's certificate is good, but an auditor disagrees, it goes to hearings and your customer loses, guess who they will come after to make up the loss. They are a major hassle for retailers no doubt about it. In Texas, there are not just resale certificates, there are: exemption certificates, direct pay certificates, Prior Contract Exemption Certificates, Uniform Sales and Use Tax Certificate-Multijurisdiction certificates, Mexican Registration Forms, etc.For your question I'm not sure if you mean checking to see if the number is valid or checking to see if the certificate is valid. These are two VERY different questions. Even if the number is valid the certificate itself can be invalid. What if the purchaser is buying for resale property of a kind not normally resold in the purchaser's business? In Texas I've seen a resale certificates from a taqueria trying to get passenger tires tax free- most likely invalid, and truck stops using them to buy perfume tax free- probably valid.For most states there is a site to verify if your customer's permit account number on the resale certificate is currently valid, but that's it. But you, as a seller, are responsible for ensuring the resale certificate is properly completed.Each state sets the rules for obtaining sales tax permits. In Texas all you need is a sales tax certificate and you can issue a resale certificate. Plus in Texas, they don't expire but are valid as long as the number is still valid. It needs to be properly filled out. Louisiana and the various parishes will be a test for anyone to get right.I've wrote a bit about certificates before there is a lot more than just this especially if you take into account all the different permutations of the 50 US states. http://qr.ae/TU1fbu "How does a website verify the sales tax exemption status of its customers?"

Exemption/resale certificates are a major hassle for brick and mortar stores and for e-comm sites, a lot just simply don't accept them.Now each state has their own rules around certificates and if you sell to an area where you have nexus and want to be able to accept certificates then you need to learn who they operate in your jurisdiction quick.In Texas, there is no requirement to renew exemption or resale certificates. If they are aging then it is wise, however, to verify with your customer that the information (address, phone number, etc.) on the certificate is still correct.There is no requirement that a taxpayer provide a copy of his or her Texas sales tax permit to his/her supplier. Some do and that is OK. But sometimes sales are taxable and sometimes they are nontaxable. Just coding a customer as nontaxable will open you up to some sales tax exposure.Just for TEXAS the types of certificates include:• Resale Certificate* (Rule 3.285)• Exemption Certificate (Rule 3.287)• Direct Payment Exemption Certificate* (Rule 3.288)• Alcoholic Beverage Exemption Certificate* (Rule 3.289)• Prior Contract Exemption Certificate (Rule 3.319)*Valid taxpayer numbers are required on these certificates.If you accept a certificate at the time of sale, then the certificate should be considered as accepted in good faith unless there is something obviously wrong on the face of the certificate (not a valid 11-digit number on a resale certificate, for example, or not signed, or illegible, or, or, or...). Wholesalers will sometimes require a copy for your permit to see if the number and address is legit, even if the Comptroller doesn't require it they might.To be valid a resale certificate in Texas it must contain: (these are from the rule)• The name and address of the purchaser• The purchaser's 11-digit Texas sales tax permit number. If the application is pending, the resale certificate is valid for only 60 days. After that date a new resale certificate should be issued which lists the permanent permit number• An out-of-state permit number or the registration number assigned to the purchaser by the purchaser's home state• Mexican retailers must show their Federal Taxpayers Registry (RFC) number on the certificate and also give a copy of their Mexican registration for to the seller• A description of the item(s) to be purchased, leased, or rented• The signature of the purchaser and the date• A description of the items generally sold, leased, or rented by the purchaser in the regular course of business• The seller's name and addressMiscellaneous Notes Regarding Resale Certificates in Texas:1) Photocopies of sales tax permits or just a taxpayer number written down on a piece of paper alone does not qualify as a resale certificate. Happens all of the time. Won't work in an audit, nope.2) Faxed copies of signed resale certificates will work just fine, but they have to be dated at the time of the sale.Exemption CertificatesFor Texas sales, an exemption certificate is similar to resale certificate, except that a taxpayer number is not required for it to be valid.In Texas, an exemption certificate may be issued to a supplier by: (from the rule)• An organization that has qualified for exemption under Chapter 151, Sections 151.309 and 151.310 of the sales tax law - refer to Rule 3.222, Exempt Organizations• A person purchasing an item which is exempt under the provisions of Chapter 151, Subchapter H of the sales tax law: for example, purchases that qualify for the agricultural exemption, materials consumed in manufacturing an item for sale, etc.• A purchaser of a taxable item who donates the taxable item to an organization exempted under Section 151.309 or 151.310(a)(1) or (2) of this code - any use by the purchaser of the tangible personal property or taxable service other than retention, demonstration, or display shall be subject to taxIn Texas, an exemption certificate must contain: (again from the rule)• The name and address of the purchaser• A description of the item to be purchased, leased, or rented• The specific reason the purchase is exempt from tax• The signature of the purchaser and the date• The seller's name and address• A statement that the purchaser will be liable for payment of the sales and use taxes which may become due for failure to comply with the provision of the Tax CodeAn exemption certificate is not required (IN TEXAS ONLY) if the purchase is:• Made by the federal government• The State of Texas and its agencies or political subdivisions• Exempt by statute, such as sales of water, deer corn, etc...Miscellaneous Notes Regarding Exemption Certificates:• Check for certificates which are qualified• Certificate states that only certain purchases are exempt• Certificate states that purchases are exempt with the exception of certain items• Exemption certificate on file pertains only to a specific job number• Out-of-state governmental agencies and foreign governments do not qualify for exemption from sales tax.• An exemption certificate cannot be issued to support a tax-free sale/purchase of tangible personal property exported outside the United States.• A multi-state exemption certificate can be issued to a provider of a taxable service when the purchaser of the service derives benefits from that service for locations both in Texas and out-of-state. The purchaser issuing the certificate assumes all responsibility for accruing tax for the appropriate jurisdictions and remitting the tax to the Comptroller.There is even more related to certificates than what I put down here. They trip up regular stores because of the turnover of the front end staff and training might be lacking in this department.The following website might help out just for Texas certificates. Hotels use it a lot because an exempt entity might be exempt from sales tax but not hotel occupancy tax. BUT just checking does not mean you don't have to have the exemption in your possession, because you do.https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/exempt/search.php

Sales taxes in the US are a totally local issue with rules varying state by state. I can give you a little guidance when dealing with Texas sales tax issues re. exempt organizations. When an organization purchases a taxable item for its own use, and is able to claim the exemption (you can't get an exemption for tax paid on parking for example), an exemption certificate must be accepted in place of the tax or the tax must be paid. In Texas, exemption certificates do not require a tax number to be valid. However if the same organization is purchasing items for resale, the organization needs to issue a resale certificate in place of the tax. In Texas, resale certificates do require a sale tax id number to be valid.Payment by check from an exempt organization does not cut it as documentation of the exempt status of the sale. The seller must have a properly completed and valid resale or exemption certificate in place of the tax. As an additional level of fun, you can be an exempt organization, exempt from paying sales tax but not exempt in paying the Hotel Occupancy Tax.But you as a sell are not required by the State of Texas to accept an exemption certificate. To make it easy, I’ll quote from one of the publications put out by the Comptroller, “Retailers are not required under Texas law to accept a claim for exemption, but may choose to do so by accepting, in good faith, a properly completed exemption certificate.If a retailer chooses not to honor an exemption certificate, the exempt organization can ask the seller to provide a properly completed Assignment of Right to Refund so the purchaser can request a refund of the tax directly from the Comptroller.”This is where you as a seller can use a bit of judgment. If someone comes in and asks to buy 100 boxes of ammo and gives you an exemption certificate from a church, and it looks fishy even to you, you do not have to take the certificate.This is the link to the publication I quoted from:Exempt Organizations: Sales And PurchasesPublication # 96-122http://star.cpa.texas.gov/view/201211677l?terms=201211677LSo short answer, if you make a sale to an exempt org. and they want their stuff tax-free, just make sure you have a complete, properly filled out exemption form. If it is taken in good faith, and you have it in your possession before the start of audit field work, you should be in good shape.