If you run a retail gas station or fixed base operator in New York, NY Form FT-943 is the quarterly inventory report you file with the Department of Taxation and Finance to account for motor fuel and highway diesel motor fuel on hand. The report tracks opening inventory, purchases, sales, and closing inventory for each quarter. It is an information report, not a tax return, so no payment goes with it.
Who Has to File
Every retail vendor that purchases, sells, or uses motor fuel or highway diesel motor fuel files FT-943 each quarter.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators That covers traditional service stations and fixed base operators that handle aviation fuel. You file even if you also hold a separate registration as a distributor, and you file in addition to any other inventory report your business activities require.
The form covers motor fuel (gasoline) and highway diesel. Highway diesel is any diesel not designated exclusively for off-road use; off-road (non-highway) diesel is dyed for farm equipment, generators, and similar uses. Kero-jet fuel goes on the same form, reported in the diesel column with a capital “K” written before the gallon figure.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators
Quarters and Due Dates
The FT-943 year runs March through February, in four quarters:
- Quarter 1: March 1 – May 31
- Quarter 2: June 1 – August 31
- Quarter 3: September 1 – November 30
- Quarter 4: December 1 – February 28 (or 29)
Each report is due on the 20th of the month after the quarter closes. If that date falls on a weekend or a recognized state holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day.2New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Nonbusiness Days: Holidays For the 2026–2027 cycle, every base due date lands on a weekend, so the adjusted deadlines are June 22, 2026 (Q1), September 21, 2026 (Q2), December 21, 2026 (Q3), and March 22, 2027 (Q4). The exact due date is printed on the form itself, so check your copy before filing.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators
How to Fill Out FT-943
Before you start, pull together your previous quarter’s closing inventory, your supplier invoices, and your pump or tank meter readings. The form has three parts.
Part 1: Business Information
Enter your sales tax vendor identification number, legal business name, DBA name if you have one, phone number, and full address, then mark the box for the quarter you are reporting.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators The form asks for your New York sales tax vendor ID, not your federal EIN. Easy mistake, so double-check.
Part 2: Inventory Reconciliation
This is the heart of the form. Each fuel type gets its own column: motor fuel in one, highway diesel in the other. Kero-jet gallons go in the diesel column with a “K” prefix.
- Line 1, opening inventory: gallons on hand at the start of the quarter. This should match your closing inventory from the previous quarter. If it doesn’t (a tank recalibration, a measurement correction), attach a written explanation.
- Line 2, gallons purchased or transferred in: total gallons received during the quarter, whether purchased from a supplier or transferred from your own non-retail storage.
- Line 3, total available: Line 1 plus Line 2.
- Line 4, gallons sold or used: what you actually sold or consumed during the quarter.
- Line 5, closing inventory: Line 3 minus Line 4. This becomes Line 1 on next quarter’s report.
Daily tank stick readings or electronic tank monitoring give you the cleanest check on these figures. If the calculated closing inventory doesn’t match a physical measurement, investigate before you file. Unexplained discrepancies tend to draw follow-up inquiries from the state.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators
Part 3: Purchase Summary
Part 3 lists every supplier you bought fuel from during the quarter. For each supplier:
- Column A: the supplier’s name and identification number, exactly as it appears on the tax certification document they gave you. For motor fuel, that certification is typically Form FT-935; for diesel, it is Form FT-1000.
- Column C: a letter code for the fuel type. U for regular unleaded, M for mid-grade unleaded, P for premium unleaded, D for diesel, K for kero-jet.
- Column D: total gallons of that fuel type purchased from that supplier during the quarter.
If you are a motor fuel wholesaler and moved fuel from your own non-retail location to your retail station, enter “self” in Column A and fill in the fuel type and gallon totals for that transfer.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators You only complete Part 3 for motor fuel if you are not registered as a motor fuel distributor, and for highway diesel if you are not registered as a diesel motor fuel or kero-jet fuel distributor.
Records You Need to Keep
Keep complete records of every gallon of motor fuel and diesel you purchase, sell, or handle. Under 20 NYCRR 413.4, those records must be detailed enough to substantiate the figures on your FT-943 and any other fuel tax filings.3Legal Information Institute. N.Y. Comp. Codes R. and Regs. Tit. 20 413.4 – Records to Be Kept by Distributors and Others Delivery tickets, bills of lading, supplier invoices, and daily tank readings all count. Preserve them for at least three years and produce them on demand if the Commissioner of Taxation and Finance or an authorized agent asks to inspect.4New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Recordkeeping for Businesses
One narrow break: individual retail transactions of 30 gallons or less do not require separate records. Your aggregate pump meter totals cover those sales.3Legal Information Institute. N.Y. Comp. Codes R. and Regs. Tit. 20 413.4 – Records to Be Kept by Distributors and Others
Filing the Form
You can file on paper or electronically through the Department of Taxation and Finance’s Business Online Services portal.5New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Online Services for Businesses The online route requires a Business Online Services account; have your sales tax vendor ID ready when you set one up.
If you mail a paper form, use the address printed in the current form’s instructions. Previous editions directed paper filings to the NYS Tax Department’s Petroleum Tracking Unit at a PO Box in Albany, NY 12205-0500. Confirm the address on your current copy before sending, since mailing to the wrong unit slows processing. Do not attach FT-943 to your sales tax return.1New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. FT-943 Quarterly Inventory Report by Retail Service Stations and Fixed Base Operators The current version (dated 5/26 for the 2026 reporting year) is available as a PDF on the department’s fuel tax forms page, and covers the full March 2026 through February 2027 cycle.6New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Motor Fuel/Diesel Motor Fuel (Monthly and Quarterly) Download a fresh copy each reporting year so you are working with current line numbers and due dates.
What Late or Missing Filings Cost
FT-943 is an information report, but New York treats fuel reporting obligations seriously. Failing to file a required return or report on time under the petroleum business tax provisions can result in a penalty of $50 or 10 percent of any tax determined to be due, whichever is greater. If the state finds the failure resulted from reasonable cause rather than willful neglect, it can waive all or part of the penalty. Fraudulent failures carry a penalty of twice the tax due.7New York State Senate. New York Tax Law 527 – Interest and Penalty Beyond the formal penalty, incomplete or missing inventory reports can flag your station for a fuel audit, which usually costs far more in time and accounting fees than filing on schedule.