The United States has no federal sales tax. Every state sets its own due dates, nexus thresholds, and filing rules. Once you register, you must file on that state’s schedule for every period, even one with zero sales.
This guide covers when your return is due, who has to file, and how to file and remit it in each state.
When Is Sales Tax Due in Each State?
Most states set the due date on the 20th of the month after the reporting period, and some use the last day of the month. A due date that lands on a weekend or legal holiday rolls to the next business day. The exact date depends on the state and your assigned frequency, so confirm it with each Department of Revenue (DOR).
The Texas Comptroller anchors returns to the 20th, while California’s CDTFA (California Department of Tax and Fee Administration) uses the last day of the month after each quarter.
| State | Due date | Frequency basis | Filing portal | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 20th of the month after the period (11:59 p.m. CT) | Monthly, quarterly, or annual by tax volume | Webfile / eSystems | Texas Comptroller |
| California | Last day of the month after each quarter (Apr 30, Jul 31, Oct 31, Jan 31) | Monthly, quarterly, quarterly prepay, or yearly by volume | CDTFA online | California CDTFA |
| New York | 20 days after each quarter, on non-standard quarters (Mar–May, Jun–Aug, Sep–Nov, Dec–Feb) | Quarterly default; monthly or annual by volume | Sales Tax Web File (mandatory) | NY Dept. of Taxation and Finance |
New York uses non-standard quarters that do not match the calendar, so its December-to-February quarter catches sellers who expect a January start. California adds a second layer: high-volume sellers must prepay mid-quarter, covered below.
Who Needs to File State Sales Tax Returns?
You must file in every state where you have nexus and hold a sales tax permit, on the schedule the state assigns, even for periods with zero sales. The chain is simple. Nexus creates the obligation. Registration activates it. Filing satisfies it every period until you formally close the account.
What Is Sales Tax Nexus?
Nexus is the connection that requires you to collect and file a state’s sales tax. It comes in two forms: physical nexus and economic nexus. Physical nexus comes from a presence in the state. Economic nexus comes from sales volume alone, with no physical footprint required.
What Creates Physical Nexus?
Physical nexus comes from a tangible presence in a state: an office, employees, contractors, or inventory stored there. Inventory in a third-party fulfillment center, including Amazon FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) warehouses, creates nexus in that warehouse state even if you never set foot there.
Foreign qualification alone does not create physical nexus. The presence has to be an office, staff, or stored inventory.
What Are the Economic Nexus Thresholds After Wayfair?
Economic nexus lets a state tax remote sellers based on sales alone, established by South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. (2018). The most common threshold is $100,000 in sales, but it varies by state, and the old 200-transaction trigger is being repealed. Frame the transaction count as phasing out, not as a fixed rule.
The Supreme Court decided South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. 5-4 on June 21, 2018, overruling the physical-presence rule of Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992). South Dakota’s original law set the trigger at $100,000 in sales or 200 transactions, then repealed the 200-transaction test effective July 1, 2023, leaving revenue as the sole trigger.
| State | Revenue threshold | Transaction threshold | Measurement base | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | $100,000 | Repealed July 1, 2023 (SB 30) | Gross sales | South Dakota DOR |
| California | $500,000 | None | Sales of tangible personal property delivered into CA | California CDTFA |
| Texas | $500,000 | None | Total Texas revenue, trailing 12 months | Texas Comptroller |
| New York | $500,000 (both required) | More than 100 transactions | Gross receipts, preceding four quarters | NY Dept. of Taxation and Finance |
| Most other states | $100,000 | Many have repealed the 200 test | Gross, retail, or taxable sales (varies) | Commenda US nexus guide |
Measurement bases differ across states: some count gross sales, some retail sales, some taxable sales only. Periods differ too, from the current or prior calendar year to a rolling 12 months. Commenda’s US economic nexus guide tracks each state’s current threshold, and the per-state Texas sales tax guide and New York sales tax guide cover the specifics.
Do You Need to Register Before You Can File?
Yes. Every state requires a sales tax permit before you collect a single dollar, and registration is what starts your filing obligation. At registration the state assigns your filing frequency based on projected liability. Collecting without a permit is illegal in most states.
Your obligation continues every period until you formally close the account with a final return. Ignoring an open registration does not end it.
What Is the Difference Between Sales Tax Filing and Remittance?
Filing is submitting the return that reports your activity. Remittance is paying the tax you collected. They are legally separate obligations, usually due the same day. Sales tax is a trust fund tax: the money belongs to the state from the moment you collect it, not to your business.
That trust fund status carries teeth. Unremitted sales tax can create personal responsible-party liability for owners and officers, and it is generally not dischargeable in bankruptcy. Collecting tax and failing to remit it is treated as a bigger red flag than not collecting at all.
What Is Use Tax and Why Is It on Your Return?
Use tax is owed by the buyer when sales tax was not charged at purchase, such as an out-of-state or online order. Most state returns are combined Sales and Use Tax Returns, so you self-assess use tax on your own untaxed purchases on the same form.
California’s CDTFA defines use tax as applying to the use, storage, or consumption of goods bought without tax, including mail order, phone, and internet purchases. It was created in 1935 to level the field between in-state and out-of-state retailers.
How Is Your Sales Tax Filing Frequency Assigned?
The state assigns monthly, quarterly, or annual filing at registration based on your tax liability volume, not your preference, and can reassign it as your volume changes. Higher liability means more frequent filing. You file on the assigned schedule until the state notifies you otherwise.
| Frequency | Typical trigger | Example rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | High liability | Texas: $1,500 or more state tax per quarter | Texas Comptroller |
| Quarterly | Moderate liability | Texas: under $1,500 per quarter | Texas Comptroller |
| Annual | Low liability | Texas: under $1,000 per year | Texas Comptroller |
| Quarterly prepay | Very high liability | California: $17,000 or more average monthly liability | California CDTFA |
Standard quarters run January–March, April–June, July–September, and October–December. A few states, notably New York, use non-standard quarters, so always match the return to the state’s own calendar.
How Do You File Sales Tax Returns by State?
Every state files through its own Department of Revenue portal, but the process follows the same six steps everywhere: gather data, log in, select the period, enter summary figures, confirm the tax, and submit with payment. There is no single federal portal.
What Data Do You Need Before Filing?
You need gross sales, taxable sales, exempt sales, marketplace sales, tax collected, and any adjustments or credits for the period. Some states also require breakdowns by county, city, or special district, so keep jurisdiction-level records if you sell into local-tax areas.
How Do You Submit and Pay?
Log in to the state portal, select the filing period, enter your summary data, confirm the calculated tax, submit the return, and pay. Payment options include ACH debit, electronic funds transfer (EFT), and card with fees. E-filing and EFT are mandatory for high-volume sellers in most states, and New York requires Web File for most filers.
What Are Home Rule States?
Home rule states let local jurisdictions administer their own sales taxes, which can mean separate local registrations and returns on top of the state filing. Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, and Louisiana are the main home rule states. Colorado and Louisiana are the most fragmented and often require city-level filings.
Do You Need to File If a Marketplace Collects Sales Tax for You?
Usually yes. Marketplace facilitator laws make platforms like Amazon or Etsy collect and remit tax on your marketplace sales, but if you have nexus you typically still need a permit and still file returns. You report marketplace sales, often on a deduction line, and stay fully responsible for your direct sales.
States cross-check facilitator-reported totals against your return, so a missing filing shows up quickly. Rules vary by state: some let sellers with only marketplace sales skip registration, and others still require it. Never assume a platform collects on your behalf without confirming.
Do You Have to File a Zero Sales Tax Return?
Yes. Once registered, you must file every period even with no sales and no tax collected. A skipped zero return triggers penalties, estimated assessments, and non-filer notices in most states. The only way to stop the obligation is to formally close the account with a final return.
What Happens If You Miss a Sales Tax Deadline?
Late filing triggers a penalty plus interest, and repeated misses raise your audit risk. Late-filing and late-payment penalties are often separate. Because sales tax is trust fund money, enforcement can reach owners and officers personally. Penalty percentages vary by state.
For state-specific penalty and interest figures, see Commenda’s guide to sales tax penalties by state. Many states waive penalties for reasonable cause if you act quickly.
How Do Exemption Certificates Affect Your Filing?
Exempt sales, such as resale, nonprofit, or certain digital goods, still get reported on your return as deductions from gross sales. You must hold a valid exemption or resale certificate for each one, or the state treats the sale as taxable on audit. Missing certificates are a top audit adjustment.
Collect the certificate at the sale, validate it, and retain it for the state’s record-retention period. B2B sales are not automatically exempt: the buyer must supply a valid certificate.
What If You Discover Past Nexus You Never Filed For?
A voluntary disclosure agreement (VDA) lets you come forward before the state finds you, usually capping the lookback period and waiving penalties in exchange for registering and paying back tax. It often beats registering prospectively, which can prompt questions about prior periods. Terms vary by state.
A VDA rarely works once a state has already contacted you about a liability. Look-back periods otherwise range from two to four years and are effectively unlimited in some states, so a VDA or clean historical registration locks in a defined, shorter window.
What Are the Filing Requirements for Remote and International Sellers?
Remote sellers, including foreign companies with no US entity, must register and file wherever they cross a state’s economic nexus threshold. No US incorporation or office is required to create nexus. Sales volume into the state is enough to trigger registration and filing obligations.
International SaaS, direct-to-consumer, and marketplace sellers frequently assume US tax applies only with a US entity. It does not, and non-compliance builds historical exposure state by state.
How Do You Stay Audit-Ready Across Multiple States?
Keep sales records, exemption certificates, filed returns, payment confirmations, and marketplace reports for 3 to 7 years, depending on the state. Documentation is your primary audit defense.
Across states you juggle different due dates, reporting breakdowns, and prepayment rules. Automation helps you calculate rates and file on time, but it does not replace nexus monitoring and registration decisions, which still need active oversight.
How Commenda Simplifies State Sales Tax Filing
Multi-state sales tax filing is procedural discipline across dozens of portals, deadlines, and thresholds. Commenda’s global indirect tax software tracks your physical and economic nexus across states, handles registrations, and automates multi-state filings so no due date is missed.
Use the US economic nexus guide to see where you have exposure, the sales tax calculator to look up rates, and the compliance calendar to track deadlines by state. Commenda connects to your systems through 100+ ERP, API, and custom integrations.
Book a demo to get a free nexus exposure assessment and a filing calendar for every state you sell into.
