To file sales tax in Texas, log in to the Comptroller’s WebFile system with your 11-digit Taxpayer Number and your RT WebFile number, enter your gross sales, exempt sales, and net taxable sales for the reporting period, and submit the return with payment by the 20th of the month after the period ends.1Texas Comptroller. Texas Sales and Use Tax Forms Every permit holder files on a schedule the Comptroller assigns — monthly, quarterly, or annual — and a return is due for each period even if you had zero taxable sales.2Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions – Obtaining a Sales Tax Permit
When Your Return Is Due
Texas defaults every permit holder to monthly filing, with the return due on or before the 20th of the month following each reporting period. If your business owes less than $500 in state and local tax for a calendar month, or less than $1,500 for a calendar quarter, the Comptroller moves you to quarterly filing.3State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 151.401 – Tax Due Dates Quarterly returns are due April 20, July 20, October 20, and January 20.
Very small-volume sellers may be assigned annual filing, with a January 20 due date for the prior calendar year. The Comptroller monitors your volume and notifies you before changing your assigned frequency, but watching your own numbers avoids surprises when sales climb and push you from annual to quarterly, or quarterly to monthly.
What to Gather Before You Log In
You need two identification numbers to reach the filing screen. Your 11-digit Texas Taxpayer Number appears on your sales tax permit and on Comptroller correspondence.4Comptroller of Public Accounts. Identify Taxpayer Your WebFile number is a separate access code printed in the upper left corner of the pre-printed return the Comptroller mails each period. For sales tax it starts with “RT” followed by six digits, for example RT123456.5Texas Comptroller. Create a Webfile Account Step-by-Step If you’ve lost it, call the Comptroller. You cannot get into WebFile without it.
Then pull your sales data for the period:
- Total gross sales — every transaction before any taxes or deductions, including cash, credit, and barter.
- Exempt sales — resale certificate sales, government purchases, out-of-state deliveries, and items specifically exempt under Texas law.
- Net taxable sales — gross sales minus exempt sales. This figure gets multiplied by the applicable tax rate.
If you operate multiple locations, break these figures out by site. Each location may sit in a different local tax jurisdiction, and the return consolidates into one filing per entity with the local portions allocated correctly.
Filing the Return Through WebFile
WebFile is at comptroller.texas.gov. After signing in with your Taxpayer Number and RT WebFile number, choose the sales tax filing option from the main menu. The system opens a digital version of Form 01-114 and auto-calculates most of the math once you enter gross sales and deductions.1Texas Comptroller. Texas Sales and Use Tax Forms
The screens walk you through total gross sales, subtracting exempt and non-taxable amounts, and arriving at net taxable sales. The system applies the state rate of 6.25 percent and the local rate for each jurisdiction you collect in, factors in the timely filing discount and any prepayment discount, and produces a summary showing the balance due. Local jurisdictions can add up to 2 percent, so the combined rate you collect maxes out at 8.25 percent depending on where each sale is sourced.6Comptroller of Public Accounts. Local Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions Review the summary before moving to payment. Correcting a mistake after submission means filing an amended return.
Paper filing on Form 01-114 is still technically available, but the Comptroller pushes electronic filing hard. Certain taxpayers are required to file electronically, and businesses that were required to and didn’t face an additional 5 percent penalty.7Comptroller of Public Accounts. Waiver Requests for Late Reports and Payments Frequently Asked Questions
Paying What You Owe
Three payment channels are available, and the right one depends on your tax volume:
- WebFile electronic check drafts directly from a checking account. You can file the return early and post-date the payment to the due date.8Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. File and Pay
- Credit card payments are accepted, but a third-party processing fee applies on top of the tax.
- TEXNET electronic funds transfer is required if you paid $500,000 or more in sales tax during the preceding state fiscal year (September 1 through August 31).
Once payment goes through, WebFile generates a confirmation number and a printable summary showing the date, time, and transaction IDs for both the return and the payment. Save the confirmation. It’s your proof of compliance if a question comes up later.
The Discount for Filing on Time
Filing and paying by the due date earns you a discount of 0.5 percent of the tax due.9Texas Comptroller. Sales and Use Tax On a $10,000 tax bill, that’s $50 you keep. The discount applies automatically when you file through WebFile and pay by the due date.
Monthly and quarterly filers can earn another 1.25 percent by prepaying a reasonable estimate of the period’s liability before the period ends. Reasonable means paying at least 90 percent of the current period’s actual tax, or at least 100 percent of what you paid for the same period a year earlier.10Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions – Reporting and Paying Tax Miss the estimate and you lose the entire prepayment discount, not just the shortfall. A business that prepays correctly and files on time retains up to 1.75 percent of its tax liability each period.
What Late Filing Costs
The penalty structure compounds fast:
- Late filing fee of $50 per delinquent return, assessed even if no tax is due for the period.11Texas Comptroller. Penalties for Past Due Taxes
- First late payment penalty of 5 percent of the tax due, assessed the day after the due date.7Comptroller of Public Accounts. Waiver Requests for Late Reports and Payments Frequently Asked Questions
- An additional 5 percent penalty 31 days after the due date.
- Determination penalty of 10 percent added when a formal billing becomes final.
- Electronic filing noncompliance penalty of 5 percent if you were required to file electronically and didn’t.
Interest begins accruing 61 days after the due date. For 2026, the rate is 7.75 percent annually (prime rate plus 1 percent).12Texas Comptroller. Interest Owed and Earned On a $1,000 balance sitting unpaid for 150 days, that works out to roughly $32 in interest, on top of the penalties. If a permit stays active but the holder simply stops filing, the Comptroller can revoke it.2Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions – Obtaining a Sales Tax Permit
Fixing a Mistake After You File
File an amended return through WebFile. The system pulls up the data from your original filing so you can see exactly what was reported.13Texas Comptroller. Main Menu – Sales Tax Change only the fields that need correcting and resubmit. If the amendment increases the tax owed, pay the difference promptly to limit penalty and interest exposure. If you overpaid, the amended return starts the refund process.
Records to Keep
Hold on to all sales and use tax records for at least four years unless the Comptroller gives you written authorization to destroy them sooner.14Comptroller of Public Accounts. Texas Sales and Use Tax Frequently Asked Questions – Keeping Records Records means everything: sales receipts, resale and exemption certificates you accepted, purchase invoices, and documentation supporting every deduction on your returns. If the Comptroller audits a specific period, keep those records until the audit and any appeal or refund claim is fully resolved.