The Broome County sales tax is 8 percent on most retail purchases, made up of a 4 percent New York State tax and a 4 percent local county tax. No city or village inside the county adds anything on top, so the rate is 8 percent everywhere from Binghamton out to the smallest town. The same 8 percent applies whether you’re buying at a store, paying for a taxable service, or ordering online for delivery into the county.
What You Pay 8 Percent On
The state portion comes from Tax Law § 1105, which taxes retail sales of tangible personal property and certain services.1New York State Senate. New York Tax Law 1105 – Imposition of Sales Tax Tax Law § 1210 lets each county add its own local sales tax, and Broome County sets its local rate at 4 percent.2New York State Senate. New York Tax Law 1210 – Taxes of Cities and Counties Administered by State Tax Commission Businesses collect the full 8 percent at the register and send it to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, which handles both pieces and sends the local share back to the county.
Prepared food, heated food, and restaurant meals are all taxable at the full 8 percent. So are most services and tangible goods that don’t fall into one of the exemption categories below.
What’s Exempt
Groceries and Medicine
Unprepared food sold for home consumption is exempt. That covers fresh produce, bread, dairy, and similar staples, as long as the food is sold unheated and in the form a retail food store would normally sell it.3Department of Taxation and Finance. Listings of Taxable and Exempt Foods and Beverages Sold by Food Stores and Similar Establishments Heat it up or serve it as a meal and the exemption disappears.
Drugs, medicines, and medical equipment are exempt whether or not a prescription is required, as long as the item is intended for the diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of illness in humans.4New York State Senate. New York Tax Law 1115 – Exemptions From Sales and Use Taxes Cosmetics and toiletries don’t qualify even if they contain medicinal ingredients. These exemptions apply at the register with no paperwork on your part.
Clothing Under $110 (Watch This One)
New York State exempts clothing and footwear priced under $110 per item from its 4 percent state tax. Counties can choose whether to also exempt the local portion, and Broome County has not. You still pay the county’s 4 percent on eligible clothing purchases.5New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Publication 718-C – Sales and Use Tax Rates on Clothing and Footwear A $90 pair of shoes in Broome County rings up at $93.60. If the item costs $110 or more, the exemption drops away entirely and the full 8 percent applies.6New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Clothing and Footwear Exemption
Many shoppers assume the clothing exemption applies statewide. For the state piece it does. For the local piece, it’s county by county, and Broome is one of the counties that still taxes it.
Hotel and Motel Stays
If you’re renting a room in a hotel, motel, or bed and breakfast in Broome County, there’s a separate 5 percent occupancy tax layered on top of the 8 percent sales tax.7New York State Senate. New York Tax Law 1202-B – Hotel or Motel Taxes in Broome County On a $150 room, that works out to $19.50 in combined tax per night.
Anyone staying at least 30 consecutive days counts as a permanent resident and is exempt from the occupancy tax. Government entities, charitable organizations, and religious institutions are also exempt when their stays qualify under the statute. The facility collects the tax and remits it to the county’s finance office.8Broome County. Occupancy Tax
Short-term rentals through Airbnb or Vrbo are a mixed bag. Platforms sometimes collect the occupancy tax automatically and sometimes don’t, depending on their arrangement with the county. If you’re a host, check directly with the county, because the legal obligation to remit falls on the property owner when the platform doesn’t collect.
Online and Out-of-County Purchases
When you buy something outside Broome County and bring it back here to use, you owe a use tax equal to the difference between the 8 percent Broome rate and whatever sales tax you already paid. The point of the use tax is to keep local retailers from being undercut by purchases made in lower-tax places.
In practice, the big online marketplaces now collect and remit New York sales tax automatically, so the situations where an individual needs to self-report have narrowed considerably. When you do need to report, use Form ST-141, the Individual Purchaser’s Periodic Report of Sales and Use Tax, which you can file online for free through the Department of Taxation and Finance. The older Form ST-140 is no longer in use.9New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Individual Purchaser’s Annual Report of Sales and Use Tax
If You’re the One Collecting Sales Tax
Any business making taxable sales in New York has to register with the Department of Taxation and Finance and get a Certificate of Authority before collecting a single dollar of sales tax. This applies to home businesses, one-time vendors, and seasonal sellers alike. Apply at least 20 days before your first taxable sale, because you can’t legally sell until the certificate arrives.10New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Register as a Sales Tax Vendor
Registration runs through New York Business Express and requires a NY.gov Business account (a personal account won’t work). Once the certificate arrives, display it where customers can see it, and give each additional business location its own certificate. Operating without one is a criminal offense carrying fines up to $10,000.11New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. How to Register for New York State Sales Tax
Filing frequency depends on how much you collect. New vendors generally start as quarterly filers, and the department may move you up or down based on actual volume.12New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Filing Requirements for Sales and Use Tax Returns
- Annual filing is available to businesses owing $3,000 or less for the annual period.
- Quarterly filing is standard for businesses with taxable receipts under $300,000 per quarter.
- Monthly (part-quarterly) filing kicks in once taxable receipts hit $300,000 in any quarter, and continues until you drop below that threshold for four consecutive quarters.
- PrompTax applies to large vendors with annual sales tax liabilities over $500,000, who pay electronically on an accelerated schedule.
You have to file for every period you’re registered, even quarters with zero sales. Keeping collected sales tax in a separate bank account is a common recommendation, because spending it accidentally on business expenses before remittance is a frequent way for small businesses to fall behind.
Buying for Resale
A business purchasing inventory it plans to resell can skip paying sales tax on those purchases by giving the seller a completed Form ST-120, the New York State Resale Certificate. You need a valid Certificate of Authority to use it, and the purchase has to be tangible personal property you’ll resell as-is or incorporate into another product.13New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Resale Certificate Contractors buying materials for a job can’t use a resale certificate. Misusing one for personal purchases carries a penalty equal to 100 percent of the tax due, plus the risk of felony prosecution.