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Taxes / Seller's permits by state / Rhode Island

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

The Rhode Island laws and rules we could read don't answer this directly: § 44-18.2-3(E) points a non-collecting marketplace seller with $100,000 of revenue or 200 transactions into the state last year to subsection (I), but (I)'s registration sentence names only remote sellers, referrers and facilitators, and facilitators collect on every marketplace sale whether or not the seller has a permit. Making retail sales in Rhode Island (your own site, a shop, a show) needs a permit to make sales at retail for each place of business, which by statute has no fee but must be renewed every year; flea market vendors get a separate Flea Market Vendor's Permit under the Division's regulation.

Rhode Island calls it a permit to make sales at retail, issued by the Rhode Island Division 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 .

Rhode Island in short

Sell only on marketplaces that collect the tax:
Not stated on the state's pages we checked
Also sell direct (own site, Facebook, flea market):
Yes: the state says to register; no fee
Resale certificate:
Rhode Island Resale Certificate
Garage and occasional sales:
Not stated on the state's pages we checked
Where to register:
RI Division of Taxation Combined Online Registration Service (Business Application and Registration)

If you sell only on eBay, Poshmark and other marketplaces

The statutes don't say directly whether a seller whose only sales go through marketplaces needs a permit. Section 44-18.2-3(E) says a marketplace seller that isn't collecting and had $100,000 or more of gross revenue or 200 or more separate transactions into Rhode Island in the prior calendar year must comply with subsection (I), but (I)'s registration sentence names remote sellers, referrers and marketplace facilitators, and it has the facilitator collect on all marketplace sales whether or not the marketplace seller has or is required to have a permit. A marketplace seller that accepts a facilitator's collection certificate in good faith may exclude marketplace sales from its returns.

The rule: R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18.2-3(E) and (I); § 44-18.2-2(6).

"A marketplace seller that accepts a marketplace facilitator's collection certificate in good faith may exclude sales made through the marketplace from the marketplace seller's returns under chapters 18 and 19 of title 44."
State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18.2-3, Requirements for non-collecting retailers, referrers, and retail sale facilitators, R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18.2-3(I)(ii)

Rhode Island's sales and use tax is administered under chapters 44-18 and 44-19 of the General Laws. A marketplace facilitator must collect the tax on all sales made through its marketplace to Rhode Island buyers, whether or not the marketplace seller has a permit.

Sources: R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18.2-3, Requirements for non-collecting retailers, referrers, and retail sale facilitators; R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18.2-2, Definitions; R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-19-1, Annual permit required - Retail business subject to sales tax - Promotion of shows - Revocation of show permit.

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

Every person who wants to engage in the business of making sales at retail in Rhode Island files an application for a permit for each place of business. Show promoters may not let anyone sell taxable goods at a show unless that person is registered and displays a permit.

Fee:
No fee to register: § 44-19-1 says there shall be no fee for this permit. Flea market vendor's permits are listed separately in the Division's regulation (see below).
Renewal:
Every permit holder renews annually; a renewal permit runs July 1 through June 30 unless canceled, suspended or revoked.
Register:
RI Division of Taxation Combined Online Registration Service (Business Application and Registration)
"There shall be no fee for this permit."
State of Rhode Island General Assembly, R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-19-1, Annual permit required - Retail business subject to sales tax - Promotion of shows - Revocation of show permit, R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-19-1(a)(1)

Sources: R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-19-1, Annual permit required - Retail business subject to sales tax - Promotion of shows - Revocation of show permit; Promoters and Flea Markets (280-RICR-20-70-17); Business Registration (RI Division of Taxation Combined Online Registration Service).

Resale certificate: buying inventory without paying sales tax

The form:
Rhode Island Resale Certificate
Do you need your own permit to give one?
Yes: the state ties the certificate to the buyer's own permit or account number

Sellers may accept either the Streamlined Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption or a Rhode Island Resale Certificate in the form the Tax Administrator prescribes. The Rhode Island certificate is signed by the purchaser, shows its name, address and the general character of what it sells, and bears its seller's permit number, unless it isn't required to hold one (for example, because it makes no sales in the state) and notes that instead.

Also accepted: Rhode Island's regulation says sellers may accept the Streamlined Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption.

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.

"Sellers may accept either the Streamlined Sale Tax Certificate of Exemption or a Rhode Island Resale Certificate from a purchaser who purchases property for resale."
Rhode Island Department of State, Resale, Certificates, Wholesalers, Distributors, and Replacement Parts (280-RICR-20-70-41)

Sources: Resale, Certificates, Wholesalers, Distributors, and Replacement Parts (280-RICR-20-70-41).

Garage sales, yard sales and other occasional sales

Not stated on the state's pages we checked. The Rhode Island sources we could read don't address garage, yard or other occasional sales by individuals.

Sources: R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-18-30, Gross receipts exempt from sales and use taxes.

Worked examples

The 200-transaction test

A seller outside Rhode Island shipped 210 orders into the state last calendar year, $3,150 in all, every one through a marketplace. That is far under $100,000 but over the 200-transaction test in § 44-18.2-3(E), which points it to subsection (I); that subsection's registration sentence names remote sellers, referrers and facilitators, and a seller holding each facilitator's collection certificate may exclude those sales from its returns. Ask the Division or a tax professional how that applies before relying on it.

Weekend flea market vendor

The Division's flea market regulation (effective January 4, 2022) says flea market vendors register for a Flea Market Vendor's Permit rather than using a retail sales permit, and lists fees of $120 a year, $40 a quarter or $10 for 30 days at one location. Confirm the current fee with the Division, since § 44-19-1, as amended in 2021, provides no fee for the regular retail sales permit.

Edge cases and details

  • Under the flea market regulation, flea market vendors may not issue resale certificates; an annual or quarterly flea market vendor gives a copy of its permit instead, and a 30-day permit holder can't buy tax-free for resale.
  • The regulation lists a penalty of $10 per booth per day for a flea market vendor operating without proper registration.
  • The flea market regulation says vendors selling only nontaxable items, such as clothing, register for a special permit at no cost and display it.
  • Under the same regulation, a flea market vendor still collects tax on taxable sales but files a return only if its tax for the registration period exceeds the registration fee it paid; an annual registrant whose tax tops $120 files by January 20 of the next year.
  • At shows, the promoter collects the tax from each out-of-state person renting space to sell taxable goods, under the promoters regulation.
  • The online registration service is for new businesses; permit renewals are made through the Division's tax portal, not the registration form.

What to do

  1. Out of state and marketplace-only: count last year's Rhode Island orders and revenue; at 200 orders or $100,000, check with the Division or a tax professional about registering, and keep each facilitator's collection certificate.
  2. Selling at retail in Rhode Island: apply through the Combined Online Registration Service for a permit to make sales at retail (no fee), and renew it each year.
  3. Selling at flea markets: ask the Division about the Flea Market Vendor's Permit before your first market.
  4. Buying inventory: give suppliers the Rhode Island Resale Certificate with your permit number, or the Streamlined certificate.

Common questions

Is there a fee for a Rhode Island sales permit?

R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-19-1 says there shall be no fee for the permit to make sales at retail; it must be renewed annually.

Can a Rhode Island flea market vendor use a resale certificate?

No. The Division's regulation says flea market vendors may not issue resale certificates; annual and quarterly flea market permit holders give suppliers a copy of the permit instead.

Related

General information, not tax or legal advice

This page summarizes Rhode Island's own published pages, rules and statutes as read on . 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 Rhode Island Division of Taxation directly.

Sources

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

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