How to Get a Seller’s Permit in Virginia: Who Registers and How to Apply

To get a seller’s permit in Virginia, register with the Virginia Department of Taxation using Form R-1, the Business Registration Application. Registration is free. If you apply online through Virginia Tax Online Services for Businesses, your 15-digit sales tax account number is issued immediately and you can start filing right away.¹ Paper applicants mail Form R-1 to the Department and wait for the physical Certificate of Registration (Form ST-4) to arrive.²

Who Has to Register

Virginia’s rule is broad. If you manufacture, import, sell, lease, or rent tangible personal property in the state, you count as a “dealer” and must register before your first sale.³ Certain taxable services, including lodging and accommodations, are covered as well.² Sole proprietors, LLCs, corporations, and partnerships are all treated the same way if they make taxable sales.

You also have to register if you have no physical presence in Virginia but your sales into the state exceed either threshold: more than $100,000 in gross retail revenue, or 200 or more separate retail transactions, in the current or previous calendar year. Hitting either one alone creates the obligation.⁴ Sales made through a marketplace facilitator like Amazon, eBay, or Etsy do not count toward these thresholds, because the platform collects Virginia sales tax on those transactions.⁵

One boundary worth flagging: if you sell only through a marketplace facilitator and never directly to customers, you generally do not need your own seller’s permit for those sales, and you are not permitted to separately collect sales tax on them. But if you also sell directly through your own website, at craft fairs, or through any other channel, those direct sales are yours to track, and once they cross the threshold you need to register.⁴

What to Gather Before You Apply

The application itself is short. Have this information ready before you sit down with Form R-1:⁶

Your Federal Employer Identification Number. All businesses need one. Sole proprietors also enter a Social Security Number. If you don’t have a FEIN yet, request one from the IRS first; it’s free at irs.gov.
Your legal business name exactly as it appears on your federal tax records. Sole proprietors use their personal name.
Any trade name or “doing business as” name you use publicly.
Your physical business address (no P.O. boxes) and a separate mailing address if you want mail sent elsewhere.
A description of your primary business activity: what you sell or what taxable service you provide.
The date of your first taxable sale in Virginia, or the date you plan to begin.

Corporations and LLCs that have not yet formed or registered to do business in Virginia may also need to register with the Virginia State Corporation Commission before applying with Virginia Tax.⁶

How to Submit the Application

Online

Go to Virginia Tax Online Services for Businesses, enter your Form R-1 information directly into the portal, and submit.⁷ Your account is created on the spot, so you can begin filing and paying as soon as you finish.¹ There is no fee.

By Mail

If you prefer paper, download Form R-1, complete and sign it, and mail it to the Virginia Department of Taxation, P.O. Box 1114, Richmond, VA 23218-1114. Paper applications are reviewed manually, so expect a longer wait. Your Certificate of Registration (Form ST-4) will arrive by standard mail once the review is finished.²

What You Get and What to Do With It

Virginia Tax issues a 15-digit sales tax account number and the Form ST-4 Certificate of Registration. The Department also assigns you a filing frequency, either monthly or quarterly, based on your expected tax liability. Higher-volume sellers file monthly; lower-volume sellers may qualify for quarterly. Virginia Tax reviews this over time and can change your frequency as your sales change.²

The certificate does not expire. It stays valid as long as you keep operating and stay in compliance. It is not transferable, though. If you sell the business, change your legal entity structure, or move locations, you have to register again.⁸

Virginia law requires you to display the certificate conspicuously at your place of business, where the public and tax inspectors can see it. Each location needs its own certificate.⁸

Buying Inventory Tax-Free After You Register

With a Certificate of Registration, you can buy inventory for resale without paying sales tax on the purchase. You give your supplier a completed Virginia Resale Exemption Certificate (Form ST-10), which tells them the goods are for resale. Tax is then collected when you sell to the end customer.⁹

The certificate applies only to items you actually intend to resell. Using it to buy office furniture, tools, or equipment for your own business use is a misuse and can bring penalties. If you’re going to use it, you owe tax on it. If you’re going to sell it, the certificate applies. A Virginia resale certificate stays valid until the Department of Taxation notifies you otherwise.

What Happens If You Don’t Register or File

Operating without a certificate, or failing to display one, is a Class 2 misdemeanor in Virginia, punishable by up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. Each day of operating in violation is a separate offense.¹⁰

Once you’re registered, file every period on time, even if you had zero sales. Late filing adds a penalty of 6% per month, capping at 30%, with a minimum $10 penalty on any late return. Interest accrues at the federal underpayment rate plus 2%.² Filing a fraudulent return or refusing to file with intent to evade tax carries a civil penalty of 100% of the correct tax, and criminal penalties in fraud cases can reach one year of imprisonment, a fine of up to $2,500, or both.¹¹

1
Virginia Department of Taxation. Online Registration FAQs
2
Virginia Department of Taxation. Retail Sales and Use Tax
3
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-612 – Tax Collectible From Dealers; Dealer Defined; Jurisdiction
4
Virginia Department of Taxation. Remote Sellers, Marketplace Facilitators, Economic Nexus
5
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-612.1 – Tax Collectible From Marketplace Facilitators
6
Virginia Tax. Form R-1 Virginia Department of Taxation Business Registration Form
7
Virginia Tax. Virginia Tax Online Services for Businesses
8
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-613 – Dealers Certificates of Registration
9
Legal Information Institute. 23 Virginia Administrative Code 10-210-280 – Certificates of Exemption
10
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-11 – Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor
11
Virginia Department of Taxation. Penalties and Interest