The sales tax rate in Kenmore, Washington is 10.3%. That rate applies to most retail purchases delivered to an address inside the city, and it combines Washington’s 6.5% state sales tax with 3.8% in local and regional taxes. Businesses report Kenmore sales under location code 1738 on their state returns.1Washington Department of Revenue. Local Sales and Use Tax Rates Listed by City – Q1 2026
What Makes Up the 10.3% Rate
Washington charges a statewide 6.5% retail sales tax on taxable sales of tangible goods, digital products, and certain services.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.020 – Tax Imposed – Retail Sales – Retail Car Rental The additional 3.8% in Kenmore comes from King County taxes and regional transit authority assessments, which the Department of Revenue tracks through location code 1738 so local revenue reaches the right jurisdictions.1Washington Department of Revenue. Local Sales and Use Tax Rates Listed by City – Q1 2026
Washington uses destination-based sourcing. If you ship or deliver an item to a customer in Kenmore, you charge the 10.3% Kenmore rate no matter where your business is physically located. Items picked up at a storefront are instead taxed at that storefront’s local rate.3Washington State Department of Revenue. Reporting Destination-Based Sales Tax For sellers who both ring up walk-in customers and deliver to homes, each transaction has to be coded to the correct location.
What the Tax Applies To
The tax covers tangible personal property such as clothing, furniture, and electronics; digital goods like downloaded music and e-books; digital automated services including streaming subscriptions; and many labor and service categories.2Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.020 – Tax Imposed – Retail Sales – Retail Car Rental Construction, repair, landscaping, and cleaning services have long been taxable in Washington because they fit the state’s definition of a retail sale.
As of October 1, 2025, Washington added a significant list of services to its retail sales tax base. Advertising, IT support, custom website development, temporary staffing, investigation and security services, live presentations including webinars, and custom software are now all taxable.4Washington Department of Revenue. Services Newly Subject to Retail Sales Tax If your Kenmore business provides or purchases any of these services, sales tax now applies where it did not before.
What’s Exempt
Groceries are the exemption most residents notice. Food and food ingredients sold for human consumption are exempt from retail sales tax, but the exemption does not cover alcohol, tobacco, or cannabis.5Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.0293 Prepared food is still taxable, meaning anything sold heated, combined by the seller with utensils, or sold ready to eat.6Washington Department of Revenue. Retail Sales Tax – Sales of Prepared Food
Prescription drugs are also exempt. Washington does not charge sales tax on medications dispensed under a prescription, including drugs and devices used for family planning.7Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.0281 Over-the-counter medications sold without a prescription are generally taxable.
Businesses buying inventory for resale can purchase tax-free using a reseller permit from the Department of Revenue, with the seller keeping a copy on file to document the exempt sale. Misusing a reseller permit on items you actually consume triggers a penalty equal to 50% of the unpaid tax.8Legal Information Institute. Washington Administrative Code 458-20-102 – Reseller Permits
Use Tax on Untaxed Out-of-State Purchases
If you buy something from an out-of-state seller or an online retailer that did not collect Washington sales tax, you owe use tax at the same rate as the local sales tax. For Kenmore, that’s 10.3%.9Washington State Legislature. WAC 458-20-178 – Use Tax and the Use of Tangible Personal Property
The obligation is the same whether the purchase is personal or for a business. Registered businesses report use tax on their regular excise tax return. Everyone else files a Consumer Use Tax Return through the Department of Revenue, with payment due by the 25th of the month after the purchase.9Washington State Legislature. WAC 458-20-178 – Use Tax and the Use of Tangible Personal Property
Filing Schedule and Due Dates for Businesses
Washington assigns your filing frequency based on how much tax you expect to owe each year:
- Monthly, if your estimated annual tax liability is over $4,800
- Quarterly, if it falls between $1,050 and $4,800
- Annually, if it is under $1,050
The Department of Revenue can adjust your frequency as your business grows or contracts.10Washington State Legislature. WAC 458-20-22801 Monthly returns are due the 25th of the following month, so January’s return is due February 25.11Washington Department of Revenue. Filing Frequencies and Due Dates Returns are filed through the My DOR online portal, and sales delivered inside Kenmore are reported under location code 1738.1Washington Department of Revenue. Local Sales and Use Tax Rates Listed by City – Q1 2026
Late Penalties
Washington’s late penalties escalate quickly:
- Not paid by the due date: 9% of the tax owed
- Still unpaid one month later: 19% total
- Still unpaid two months later: 29% total
The minimum penalty is $5 regardless of how little tax is owed.12Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.32.090 These are total penalty amounts, not additions on top of each other, and statutory interest accrues separately.
If You Sell Into Kenmore From Out of State
Remote sellers have a Washington collection obligation once their combined gross receipts sourced to the state exceed $100,000 in the current or prior year. At that point you must register with the Department of Revenue and start collecting tax on deliveries to Washington addresses, including Kenmore.13Washington Department of Revenue. Out of State Businesses Reporting Thresholds and Nexus
Marketplace facilitators such as Amazon, Etsy, and eBay must collect and remit the tax on all taxable sales they facilitate, whether or not the individual seller has crossed the threshold.14Washington State Legislature. RCW 82.08.0531 If you also sell directly through your own site, that channel is your responsibility to manage separately.
If You Should Have Been Collecting and Weren’t
Businesses that discover they should have been collecting Washington sales tax, often remote sellers who crossed the $100,000 threshold without realizing it, can use the Department of Revenue’s Voluntary Disclosure Agreement program. Coming forward before the state contacts you generally limits the lookback to four years plus the current year, and participants can have up to 39% in combined penalties waived: the 5% assessment penalty, the 5% unregistered business penalty, and the 29% late-payment penalty.
One exception matters. If you actually collected sales tax from customers but did not remit it to the state, the 29% late-payment penalty still applies and there is no time limit on how far back the state can look. Statutory interest applies to all amounts owed regardless of any penalty waiver.15Washington Department of Revenue. Voluntary Disclosure Program