Missouri Sales Tax Guide

SALES TAX RATE:

4.225%

MAXIMUM LOCAL & COUNTY RATES:

5.625%

Read this Guide

This guide simplifies compliance with Missouri's sales tax code by breaking down the process into four easy steps:

• Taxable Goods and Services
• Register for Sales Tax
• Collecting Sales Tax
• File Your Sales Tax Return

Use a Professional Sales Tax Service:

One such reliable service:

TaxJar helps entrepreneurs with ecommerce sites calculate sales tax at checkout ($17/month)

Which Goods and Services are Taxable?

Determining whether or not the products or services your company sells are taxable in Missouri is the first step in sales tax compliance.

Traditional Goods or Services

Goods that are subject to sales tax in Missouri include physical property, like furniture, home appliances, and motor vehicles.

The purchase of prescription medicine and gasoline are tax-exempt.

Some services in Missouri are subject to sales tax. For a detailed list of taxable services, view this table from the Missouri Department of Revenue website

Digital Goods or Services

A digital good or service is anything electronically delivered, such as an album downloaded from iTunes or a film purchased from Amazon.

Missouri does not require businesses to collect sales tax on the sale of digital goods.

How to Register for Missouri Sales Tax

If you determined that you need to charge sales tax on some or all of the goods and services your business sells, your next step is to register for a seller's permit. This allows your business to collect sales tax on behalf of your local and state governments.

In order to register, you will need the following information:

• Personal identification info (SSN, address, etc.)
• Business identification info (EIN, address, etc.)
• Estimated monthly sales to buyers in Missouri
• Business entity

Businesses that market taxable goods or services must obtain a seller's permit in their state before they can do business. In order to register for a seller’s permit; if the business is making retail sales, a bond must be posted that is equal to three times the average monthly sales and use tax. You can use this calculator to determine your Missouri bond amount.

After two years of good payment history, you can request to have this bond refunded.

Register for a Seller’s Permit

Register for a Seller's Permit online through the Missouri Department of Revenue

Fee: None

Expiration: None

Save Money with a Resale Certificate

With a resale certificate, also known as a reseller's permit, your business does not have to pay sales tax when purchasing goods for resale.

Download Resale Certificate

Download the Resale Certificate through the Missouri Department of Revenue

Collecting Sales Tax

After getting your seller's permit and launching your business, you will need to determine how much sales tax you need to charge different customers. To avoid fines and the risk of costly audits, it's important for business owners to collect the correct rate of sales tax.

When calculating sales tax, you'll need to consider the following kinds of sales:

• Store Sales
• Shipping In-State
• Out-of-State Sales

Recommended: Use our Sales Tax Calculator to look up the sales tax rate for any Zip Code in the US.

Store Sales

For traditional business owners selling goods or services on site, calculating sales tax is easy: all sales are taxed at the rate based on the location of the store.

Here's an example of what this scenario looks like:

Mary owns and manages a bookstore in Branson, Missouri. Since books are taxable in the state of Missouri, Mary charges her customers a flat-rate sales tax of 6.1% on all sales. This includes Missouri’s state sales tax rate of 4.225% and Taney county’s sales tax rate of 1.875%.

In-State Sales

The state of Missouri follows what is known as an origin-based sales tax policy. This means that long-distance sales within Missouri are taxed according to the address of the seller. This policy applies to state, county, and city sales taxes.

Consider the following example:

Steve runs his own business selling electronics on eBay out of his home in Tarkio, Missouri. A customer living in Springfield, Missouri finds Steve’s eBay page and purchases a $350 pair of headphones. When calculating the sales tax for this purchase, Steve applies the 4.225% state tax rate for Missouri, plus 2.25% for Atchinson county’s tax rate as well as Tarkio’s city tax rate of 2.0%. At a total sales tax rate of 8.475%, the total cost is $379.66 ($29.66 sales tax).

Out-of-State Sales

Missouri businesses only need to pay sales tax on out-of-state sales if they have nexus in other states. Nexus means that the business has a physical presence in another state.

Common types of nexus include:

• A physical location, such as an office, store, or warehouse
• An employee who works remotely or who is a traveling sales representative
• A marketing affiliate
• Drop-shipping from a third party seller.
• A temporary physical location, including festival and fair booths.

File Your Sales Tax Return

Now that you’ve registered for your Missouri seller's permit and know how to charge the right amount of sales tax to all of your customers, you are all set to file your sales tax return. Just be sure to keep up with all filing deadlines to avoid penalties and fines.

Recommended: Accounting software can help simplify your business tax returns as well as help with payroll and bookkeeping. Try our recommended accounting service today to save thousands of dollars on your taxes.

How to File

Missouri requires businesses to file sales tax returns and submit sales tax payments online.

File the Missouri Sales Tax Return

File the Missouri Sales Tax Return

How Often Should You File?

How often you need to file depends upon the total amount of sales tax your business collects.

• Annual filing: If your business collects less than $33.33 in sales tax per month then your business should elect to file returns on an annual basis.
• Quarterly filing: If your business collects between $33.33 and $500 in sales tax per month then your business should elect to file returns on a quarterly basis.
• Monthly filing: If your business collects more than $500 in sales tax per month then your business should file returns on a monthly basis.

Note: Missouri requires you to file a sales tax return even if you have no sales tax to report.

Filing Deadlines

All Missouri sales tax return deadlines fall on the 20th day of the month, unless it is a weekend or federal holiday, in which case the deadline is moved back to the next business day.

Annual filing: January 20, 2020

Quarterly filing:

• Q1 (Jan. - Mar.): Due April 20
• Q2 (April - June): Due July 20
• Q3 (July - Sept.): Due Oct. 20
• Q4 (Oct. - Dec.): Due Jan. 20, 2018

Monthly filing: The 20th of the following month, or the next business day, e.g. April 20th for the month of March, or May 20th for the month of April.

Penalties for Late Filing

Missouri charges a late filing penalty of 5% per month or partial month up to a maximum of 25% of the tax that is reported on the tax return.

Missouri also charges a late payment penalty that is equal to 5% of the tax that is unpaid if the return has at least been filed.

The state assesses the unpaid tax with a compounded interest rate of 4% per year or 0.33% per month or partial month for any unpaid tax or penalty.

Missouri Helpful Resources

Sales and Use Tax Overview

Sales Tax Frequently Asked Questions

Local Government Tax Guide

Sales/Use Tax General Inquiries Helpline: 
(573) 751 - 2836