Taxes / Seller's permits by state / Ohio

Do I need a seller's permit to sell on eBay or Poshmark in Ohio?

No: the Ohio Department of Taxation says that as long as all of a marketplace seller's sales are reported by, and the Ohio tax collected by, the marketplace facilitator, the seller does not need to register for a seller's use tax license or a vendor's license. An Ohio seller who also sells direct from a fixed place of business needs a regular vendor's license for each location, and selling at flea markets or shows in other counties can call for a transient vendor's license; new vendor's license applications cost $50 since April 9, 2025.

Ohio calls it a vendor's license, issued by the Ohio Department of Taxation.

General information, not tax or legal advice. Check with a tax professional about your own situation.

Checked against the official pages listed below on Oct 23, 2026.

Ohio in short

Sell only on marketplaces that collect the tax:: No: the state says registration is not required
Also sell direct (own site, Facebook, flea market):: Yes: the state says to register; $50 fee
Resale certificate:: Sales and Use Tax Blanket Exemption Certificate (STEC B)
Garage and occasional sales:: Exempt: fewer than six days of sales in a year; on six or more days the sales are taxable and a vendor's license is required
Where to register:: OH|TAX eServices (or your county auditor)

If you sell only on eBay, Poshmark and other marketplaces

If all of a marketplace seller's sales are reported by the facilitator and the Ohio tax is collected by it, the seller does not need a seller's use tax account or a vendor's license and doesn't file zero returns. A seller that keeps an account open without filing returns gets delinquency notices, and marketplace sales still count when a seller tests whether it has substantial nexus.

The rule: Ohio Department of Taxation, Substantial Nexus and Marketplace Facilitator FAQ.

"As long as all of the sales made by the marketplace seller are reported by and the Ohio tax collected by the marketplace facilitator, the marketplace seller does not need to register for a seller's use or vendor's license."

Ohio Department of Taxation, Sales and Use Tax - Substantial Nexus and Marketplace Facilitator, FAQ on a marketplace seller whose only sales are made through a marketplace facilitator

Ohio's state sales tax rate is 5.75%, and counties and transit authorities can add up to 3%, for a combined rate of no more than 8.75%; vendors charge the rate in effect in the county where the sale is made unless the sale is exempt or the buyer gives a valid exemption certificate. Since September 1, 2019, marketplace facilitators collect and remit Ohio sales tax on sales they make on behalf of marketplace sellers.

Sources: Sales and Use Tax - Substantial Nexus and Marketplace Facilitator; Sales and Use Tax; Sales and Use - Information for Vendors (Licensing and Filing).

If you also sell direct: your own site, Facebook, flea markets, consignment

No one may make taxable retail sales as a business without a license: every Ohio retailer making taxable retail sales needs a regular vendor's license for each fixed place of business, and a transient vendor who takes goods to temporary places, shows, fairs or flea markets in counties where it has no fixed place of business may get a transient vendor's license instead. An out-of-state seller with more than $100,000 of Ohio gross receipts or 200 or more transactions in the current or previous year registers for a seller's use tax license.

Fee:: $50 for each fixed place of business (new applications rose from $25 to $50 on April 9, 2025); a transient vendor's license is also $50.
Renewal:: The pages checked state no renewal; licensed vendors must file returns until the license is closed, and a final return is due within 15 days of the last sale.
Register:: OH|TAX eServices (or your county auditor)

"Effective April 9, 2025, new vendor's license applications increased from $25 to $50."

Ohio Department of Taxation, Sales and Use Tax, Vendor's License Fee Increase

Sources: Section 5739.17 - Ohio Revised Code; Sales and Use Tax; Sales and Use - Information for Vendors (Licensing and Filing); Sales and Use Tax - Substantial Nexus and Marketplace Facilitator.

Resale certificate: buying inventory without paying sales tax

The form:: Sales and Use Tax Blanket Exemption Certificate (STEC B)
Do you need your own permit to give one?: Not stated on the pages we checked

Ohio does not issue a sales tax exemption number, and a vendor's license number is not one; to buy for resale tax-free you give the supplier a properly completed exemption certificate, such as the blanket STEC B (or the unit certificate STEC U for a single purchase), stating resale as the reason. The STEC B asks for the purchaser's vendor's license number, if applicable.

Also accepted: The Department says the Multistate Tax Commission Uniform Sales and Use Tax Certificate is accepted for resale, and the Streamlined Sales Tax exemption certificate is accepted in place of several Ohio certificates.

Thrift stores, estate sales and yard sales

The state pages we checked don't say anything specific about using a resale certificate at a thrift store, estate sale or yard sale. A certificate is given to a seller who would otherwise charge you tax, so whether a particular store takes one is between you and that seller; ask before you buy.

"The State of Ohio does not issue a sales tax exemption number. A vendor's license number is NOT a sales tax exemption number."

Ohio Department of Taxation, Sales and Use - Information for Vendors (Licensing and Filing)

Sources: Sales and Use - Exemption Certificates and Statements of Exempt Sales; STEC B, Sales and Use Tax Blanket Exemption Certificate (Rev. 7/25); Sales and Use - Information for Vendors (Licensing and Filing).

Garage sales, yard sales and other occasional sales

Exempt: fewer than six days of sales in a year; on six or more days the sales are taxable and a vendor's license is required. Casual sales are exempt under R.C. 5739.02(B)(8), except sales of titled motor vehicles, watercraft and outboard motors, documented watercraft, snowmobiles and all-purpose vehicles. The Department says garage sales and casual sales are exempt unless they occur on six or more days in a year, and its vendor brochure says someone who buys used household goods at yard sales and resells them is making retail sales and needs a vendor's license.

The rule: R.C. 5739.02(B)(8).

"Garage sales and casual sales are exempt (except titled vehicles, and if occurrence is 6 or more days in a year it is taxable and a Vendor License is required)."

Ohio Department of Taxation, Sales and Use Taxability, Occasional Sales

Sources: Section 5739.02 - Ohio Revised Code; Sales and Use Taxability; Vendors: Sales Tax Laws in Ohio.

Worked examples

A storefront plus weekend flea markets

An Ohio reseller with one fixed shop pays $50 for a regular vendor's license there. R.C. 5739.17 lets a vendor's license holder sell at a show, fair or flea market in a county where it holds a license for a fixed place of business without a transient vendor's license. To sell at flea markets in other counties, it can get a $50 transient vendor's license good in any county where it has no fixed place of business, for $100 in license fees.

Counting garage sale days

Three two-day garage sales in one year are six days of sales. Under the Department's taxability guidance, sales on six or more days in a year are taxable and need a vendor's license, so a sixth day turns the activity into licensed selling.

An out-of-state seller adding a website

A seller outside Ohio makes 150 Ohio sales on marketplaces and 60 on its own website in a year: 210 transactions, over the 200 test. The Department says a marketplace seller counts all channels for the thresholds, so it registers for a seller's use tax license, reports all gross sales on line 1 and lists the marketplace sales with exempt sales on line 2.

Tax on a $40 direct sale

At Ohio's 5.75% state rate, a licensed vendor collects $2.30 of state tax on a $40 taxable sale ($40 x 0.0575). With the most local and transit tax allowed, a combined 8.75%, the tax would be $3.50; the actual county rate falls between the two.

Edge cases and details

The Department says a marketplace seller that chooses to keep an Ohio account open but doesn't file returns will receive delinquency notices.
Fair, flea market and show organizers must keep a record of every transient vendor's name, permanent address, vendor's license number and type of goods for four years.
Vendors who make sales without a license, or with a suspended or revoked license, are subject to assessments, fines and criminal penalties, the Department says.
If you stop making taxable retail sales, the Department says to file a final return and pay all taxes within 15 days of the final sale.
A return not filed on time, or tax not paid in full, can bring an additional charge of up to $50 or 10 percent of the tax due, whichever is greater, the Department says.
The Department's vendor brochure contrasts a casual sale, such as a table and chair set bought five years ago and used at home, with buying used household goods at a yard sale and selling them at your own yard sale a few weeks later, which it calls retail sales that need a vendor's license.

What to do

Marketplace-only: confirm each marketplace collects Ohio tax on your sales; the Department says a seller whose every sale is reported, and its Ohio tax collected, by the marketplace doesn't need a vendor's license or seller's use tax license.
Selling from an Ohio location: get a $50 regular vendor's license for each fixed place of business through OH|TAX eServices or your county auditor before your first taxable sale.
Selling at shows or flea markets in other counties: consider the $50 transient vendor's license.
Buying inventory: give suppliers a completed STEC B claiming resale; check with a tax professional if you are unsure which certificate fits.

Common questions

How much is an Ohio vendor's license?

$50 for each fixed place of business for new applications since April 9, 2025 (it was $25 before); a transient vendor's license is also $50.

Is an Ohio vendor's license number a resale number?

No. The Department says Ohio doesn't issue a sales tax exemption number; you claim resale on an exemption certificate such as STEC B.

Do I need a vendor's license for a garage sale in Ohio?

No, garage and casual sales are exempt, but the Department's guidance says sales on six or more days in a year are taxable and need a vendor's license.

Do I need an Ohio vendor's license to resell things I buy at garage sales?

The Department's vendor brochure says a person who buys used household goods at a yard sale and resells them is making retail sales and needs a vendor's license; selling your own used belongings is a casual sale.

General information, not tax or legal advice

This page summarizes Ohio's own published pages, rules and statutes as read on Oct 23, 2026. It doesn't say whether you must register, what you should file or whether you owe tax: that turns on your own sales, where you sell and what you buy. Rules change. Check with a tax professional, or ask the Ohio Department of Taxation directly.

Sources

Official pages this page is built from, with the day each was read.

Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and Use Tax - Substantial Nexus and Marketplace Facilitator; read Oct 23, 2026. Marketplace-only sellers don't register; thresholds; reporting marketplace sales.
Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and Use - Information for Vendors (Licensing and Filing); read Oct 23, 2026. License types; county rate; no exemption number; late filing charge; penalties; final returns.
Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and Use Tax; read Oct 23, 2026. 5.75% state rate and 8.75% combined maximum; OH|TAX eServices and county auditors; $25 to $50 fee increase April 9, 2025; returns until closed.
Ohio Legislative Service Commission: Section 5739.17 - Ohio Revised Code; read Oct 23, 2026. License required; $50 per fixed place of business; $50 transient vendor's license; selling at events in a licensed county; organizer records.
Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and Use - Exemption Certificates and Statements of Exempt Sales; read Oct 23, 2026. STEC B and STEC U; MTC and Streamlined certificates accepted.
Ohio Department of Taxation: STEC B, Sales and Use Tax Blanket Exemption Certificate (Rev. 7/25); read Oct 23, 2026. Blanket certificate fields, vendor's license number if applicable.
Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and Use Taxability; read Oct 23, 2026. Garage and casual sales exempt unless six or more days a year.
Ohio Legislative Service Commission: Section 5739.02 - Ohio Revised Code; read Oct 23, 2026. Casual sales exemption, R.C. 5739.02(B)(8).
Ohio Department of Taxation: Vendors: Sales Tax Laws in Ohio; read Oct 23, 2026. Casual sale versus reselling yard-sale finds (an older brochure; its $25 license fee predates the April 9, 2025 increase to $50).

Free 1-page Reseller Cheat Sheet: fees on 8 platforms, Media Mail and stamp prices

What each platform takes from a $10, $25 and $50 sale, Media Mail 1-10 lb, Ground Advantage to Zones 1, 5 and 8, and the Forever stamp, on one printable page. The link appears as soon as you sign up.