The Maryland amusement tax, formally the admissions and amusement tax, is a local gross receipts tax on businesses that charge for entertainment, recreation, and related services. Counties, municipalities, and the Maryland Stadium Authority set their own rates up to statutory caps, but the Comptroller of Maryland collects the money statewide and returns it, less administrative costs, to the jurisdiction that imposed it. Rates run from 0.5% to 10% depending on where the activity happens and what kind of charge it is.
Because the tax falls on the business receiving the revenue rather than on the customer paying admission, a sales tax exemption certificate from a nonprofit buyer does nothing to reduce what the venue owes.1Comptroller of Maryland. Tax Guidance – Admissions and Amusement Tax
What Triggers the Tax
Maryland defines an “admissions and amusement charge” broadly. Five categories of receipts can be taxed:
- Admission to a venue, including separate charges once inside the enclosure (movie theaters, concert halls, arenas, amusement parks).
- Coin-operated games, pinball, arcade games, and similar amusement devices.
- Use of recreational or sports facilities such as golf courses, athletic clubs, bowling alleys, and skating rinks.
- Rental or use of recreational or sports equipment, including boats, go-karts, and ski gear.
- Food, refreshments, merchandise, or services sold at any venue where live entertainment or dancing accompanies the sale.
The last category is the one that catches operators off guard. A restaurant that books a live band on weekends triggers the tax on those nights, even though its ordinary weekday service does not. The test is whether live entertainment or dancing accompanies the food and drinks. A restaurant with only background radio, television, or mechanical music, and no dancing permitted, is specifically outside the tax.2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-103 – Limitations on Authorization to Tax
In Anne Arundel County and Calvert County, “game of entertainment” also reaches instant bingo played under a commercial bingo license.3Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-101 – Definitions Political fundraiser admissions are carved out by statute and are not taxable.
What’s Excluded
Some receipts cannot be taxed at all, no matter what the local ordinance says. The biggest category is receipts used exclusively for charitable, educational, or religious purposes. Volunteer fire companies, nonprofit rescue squads, and fraternal or veterans’ organizations chartered by Congress qualify, as do agricultural fairs whose net earnings don’t benefit individual stockholders or members.2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-103 – Limitations on Authorization to Tax
The word “exclusively” matters. If a gala’s receipts fund both a charity’s mission and a for-profit vendor’s margin, the exclusion may not cover the full amount. Track where the money actually ends up.
Other statewide exclusions:
- Admission charges to live boxing and wrestling matches.
- Receipts from concerts or theatrical events presented by nonprofit organizations that run annual scheduled concert series or receive direct government grants.
- Restaurants and bars whose only entertainment is radio, television, or mechanical music and that do not permit dancing.
Several counties have their own carve-outs. Baltimore County exempts nonprofit community associations and agricultural tourism. Harford County exempts golf entertainment venues, drive-in movie theaters, agricultural tourism, and roller skating rinks. Montgomery County exempts certain receipts within designated enterprise zones. Washington County exempts amusement devices subject to separate licensing requirements.2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-103 – Limitations on Authorization to Tax
Beyond these mandatory limits, local jurisdictions may voluntarily exempt nonprofit community associations working on civic improvement, nonprofit performing arts organizations, and qualifying businesses in designated arts and entertainment districts. Baltimore City may also exempt amateur recreational sports events and leagues. A business that qualifies in one county may still owe the tax in the next one.4Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-104 – Exemptions to Tax
Rates and How They Stack
A county or municipality can tax gross receipts at up to 10%. The Maryland Stadium Authority can tax events at its venues at up to 8%. When both the Stadium Authority and a local jurisdiction tax the same receipts, their combined rate is capped at 10%. Local jurisdictions may also apply different rates to different classes of charges, so nightclub receipts and golf fees in the same county can carry different numbers.5Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-105 – Tax Rates and Additional Tax
Any jurisdiction that changes its rate or reclassifies an activity has to notify the Comptroller at least 60 days before the change takes effect.5Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-105 – Tax Rates and Additional Tax
Maryland’s general sales tax is 6%. In most cases the admissions and amusement tax replaces the sales tax on the same receipts rather than stacking, but where both apply, the combined rate is capped at 11%. Calvert County goes further: it cannot impose the admissions and amusement tax at all on receipts already subject to the sales and use tax.2Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-103 – Limitations on Authorization to Tax
Electronic bingo machines and electronic tip jars run on a different track. The state itself imposes a 30% tax on net proceeds, or 33% in Calvert County. If a county or municipality also taxes those net proceeds, the combined state-plus-local rate cannot exceed 35%.6Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-105 – Tax Rates and Additional Tax
Registering Your Business
Any business that will owe the tax must register before it starts operating. Registration goes through the Maryland Combined Registration Application, which opens multiple state tax accounts at once, including the admissions and amusement account.7Comptroller of Maryland. Maryland Combined Registration Online Application
You’ll need a Federal Employer Identification Number first, unless you’re a sole proprietor registering only for a sales and use tax license. The application asks where your taxable activities take place, because revenue is routed back to the specific jurisdiction where the activity happened. Once the application is processed, the Comptroller assigns an admissions and amusement account number. Operating without registering can bring penalties and back-assessments, so handle this well before your first event.
Filing and Paying
Returns go through the Maryland Tax Connect Portal, which replaced the older bFile and bServices systems. Historical information still lives in bServices, but current filings and payments must use the new portal.8Comptroller of Maryland. bServices Online Service Center
Returns are due by the 10th day of the month after the reporting period. Businesses whose tax averages more than $100 per month generally file monthly; smaller filers file quarterly. Each return reports total gross receipts and the tax calculated at the applicable local rate, and each submission must include the proper jurisdiction code so the revenue reaches the right county or municipality. The portal returns an electronic confirmation that is your compliance record.
Starting in 2027, electronic filing is mandatory for all admissions and amusement tax returns. Paper returns mailed to the Revenue Administration Division in Annapolis remain an option for 2026, but businesses without a Maryland Tax Connect account should set one up now.9New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-201 – Tax Return Required
Late Filing and Audit Exposure
A late return brings a penalty of up to 10% of the unpaid tax, plus interest that keeps running until the balance is paid.10Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 13-701 – Penalty for Failure to Pay Tax11Maryland Comptroller of the Treasury. Business Tax Tip 21 – Filing the Admissions and Amusement Tax Return
The Comptroller generally has three years from the later of the due date or the filing date to audit and assess more tax. That window disappears if the IRS changes your federal return and you fail to notify the Comptroller within 90 days; in that situation there is no statute of limitations on the assessment. If you do notify within 90 days, the Comptroller has one year to assess any deficiency.12Comptroller of Maryland. State and Federal Tax Liens
Records You Have to Keep
Keep records of all admissions and amusement tax transactions for at least four years. The Comptroller can require longer retention in writing, or consent to earlier destruction, but four years is the default.13Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-General 4-202 – Records
Separate taxable receipts from ordinary sales in your books. A restaurant that hosts live entertainment on certain nights needs to show which revenue falls under the tax and which is standard food service. Without clean records, an audit becomes an assessment based on the Comptroller’s estimates.
If You Disagree with an Assessment
If you receive a notice of assessment you believe is wrong, request an informal hearing with the Comptroller’s Hearings and Appeals Office in writing within 30 days of the notice. The Comptroller encourages filing electronically through the MyCOMConnect portal, but you can also mail the appeal to the Baltimore office.14Comptroller of Maryland. Filing Appeals
Appeals are processed within 90 days and assigned a tracking number. An attorney reviews the file to see whether it can be resolved without a formal hearing; if a hearing is needed, you’ll receive notice by email or mail.
If the informal process doesn’t resolve the dispute, you can appeal to the Maryland Tax Court within 30 days of the Comptroller’s final determination. You cannot skip straight to the Tax Court. Maryland requires you to exhaust administrative remedies with the Comptroller first.15Maryland Tax Court. Procedures of the Maryland Tax Court