Sales Delivered Outside California (Publication 101)
Registration Requirements and Reporting

California Seller’s Permit

When you sell or lease merchandise, vehicles, or other tangible personal property in California, even temporarily, you are generally required to register with us and to pay tax on your taxable sales. In some cases, a seller's permit is not required to be held by people whose sales are made exclusively in interstate or foreign commerce; however, your business may meet the requirements of a "qualified purchaser," and you may be required to register for a use tax account as discussed below.

Required registration to report use tax

A "qualified purchaser" must register with us and annually report and pay use tax directly to us, as required by Revenue and Taxation Code section 6225. If you are not required to hold a seller's permit and are not currently registered with us for use tax purposes, you may be required to register as a "qualified purchaser."

Prior to January 1, 2024, a "qualified purchaser" was defined as a person that received at least $100,000 in gross receipts from their business operations per calendar year and was not otherwise required to be registered with us. Gross receipts are the total of all receipts from both in-state and out-of-state business operations.

Beginning January 1, 2024, the definition of a "qualified purchaser" was revised* to eliminate the requirement that the person receives at least $100,000 in gross receipts per calendar year from business operations. It instead requires that the person makes more than $10,000 in purchases subject to use tax (excluding vehicles, vessels, or aircraft) per calendar year if the use tax imposed on those purchases has not otherwise been paid to a retailer engaged in business in this state or authorized to collect the tax. This change is effective from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2028.

On January 1, 2029, that definition of a "qualified purchaser" will revert to the person receiving at least $100,000 in gross receipts per calendar year from business operations.

You can register on our website at www.cdtfa.ca.gov by first selecting Register Online under Register for a Permit and then selecting Register a New Business Activity. Once you have registered, you may pay any use tax due after filing your return. You can also register in person at any of our offices to report use tax.

For additional information, see publication 126, Mandatory Use Tax Registration for Service Enterprises.

*See Assembly Bill 1097 (Stats. 2023, ch. 355).

Properly completing your sales and use tax return

You must report your total gross sales for the reporting period when submitting your sales and use tax return. If your gross sales include amounts for nontaxable sales delivered outside California, take a deduction for those amounts under Sales in Interstate and Foreign Commerce. If you don't take the deduction, you'll pay more tax than you owe.

Online Registration

You can register on our website at www.cdtfa.ca.gov by first selecting Register Online under Register for a Permit and then selecting Register a New Business Activity. For more information, visit our Online Services Registration page. You can also register in person at any of our offices. Please contact our Customer Service Center for assistance at 1-800-400-7115 (TTY:711). Customer service representatives are available Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Pacific time), except state holidays.