A Florida resale certificate — officially the Florida Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax, Form DR-13 — lets a registered dealer buy inventory and component parts without paying the state’s 6% sales tax at the time of purchase. You get one by registering as a sales tax dealer with the Florida Department of Revenue using Form DR-1. Registration is free online, and once your application is approved the department issues the certificate along with your Certificate of Registration.
Sunbiz, the Division of Corporations’ business filing portal, is a separate system used to register your entity (LLC, corporation, partnership) with the state. The resale certificate does not come from Sunbiz. It comes from the Florida Department of Revenue at floridarevenue.com.
What the Certificate Does and Who Can Get One
The Annual Resale Certificate shifts the sales tax obligation from your purchase of inventory to the final retail sale, so cash stays in the business until the goods actually generate revenue. Florida issues it only to active registered dealers. Under state law, an “active dealer” is someone currently registered with the department who is required to file at least once during each reporting period.1Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.18 – Administration of Law; Registration of Dealers; Rules
Everything purchased with the certificate must be intended for resale or for incorporation into a product you manufacture for sale. A repair business, for example, can use the certificate to buy parts that physically become part of the item being repaired. Consumables used up during the repair, like sandpaper, flux, or cleaning solvents, are taxable to the shop as overhead.2Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax – Repairs to Tangible Personal Property
Out-of-state sellers can also qualify. If you meet Florida’s economic nexus threshold of more than $100,000 in taxable remote sales into Florida during the previous calendar year, you must register as a dealer.3Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 212.0596 – Taxation of Remote Sales Registration brings the certificate with it.
How to Register with the Department of Revenue
Registration runs on the Florida Business Tax Application, Form DR-1. The fastest route is the online portal at floridarevenue.com, which walks you through an interactive questionnaire. Online registration is free. A paper application by mail carries a $5 processing fee.4Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Business Tax Application DR-1
Have this information ready before you start:
- Your Federal Employer Identification Number, or your Social Security number if the IRS doesn’t require you to have an FEIN
- The legal name of your business
- Its physical street address
- Your entity type: corporation, LLC, partnership, or sole proprietorship
- An estimate of your expected taxable sales, which the department uses to assign your initial filing frequency
Once the application is approved, the department issues two documents: a Certificate of Registration (Form DR-11) and your Annual Resale Certificate (Form DR-13).5Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Sales and Use Tax – Section: Registration and Account Changes The DR-11 is your proof of registration as a dealer. The DR-13 is what you present to suppliers when making tax-exempt purchases. Both are tied to your sales tax account number.
What You Can and Cannot Buy Tax-Free
The certificate covers tangible property and certain services bought or rented for resale or re-rental to your customers. You hand the certificate to your supplier, who keeps it on file as proof the transaction was tax-exempt.
Items your business consumes internally are never covered. Office furniture, computers, cleaning supplies, tools, employee uniforms worn on-site, display fixtures — anything that stays with you rather than leaving with a customer is a taxable purchase. A restaurant owner who uses the certificate to buy a dishwasher for the kitchen has misused it. The line is simple: if it leaves with a customer, you can buy it tax-free; if it stays with you, you owe tax.
If inventory you bought tax-free later gets pulled for business use, you owe use tax on it at the 6% state rate plus any applicable local surtax. Self-reporting is dramatically cheaper than having an auditor catch it.
Contractors on Real Property Jobs
Contractors performing real property improvements sit in a different position. Under a lump-sum or fixed-fee contract for construction, remodeling, or installation, you are the final consumer of the materials you install. You pay sales tax when you buy those materials. The resale certificate does not apply.6Florida Department of Revenue. Sales and Use Tax on Construction, Improvements, Installations and Repairs If you initially buy materials for resale and later divert them to a contract job, you must self-assess and pay use tax on them.
How Suppliers Verify Your Certificate
Suppliers have to document every exempt sale or they get stuck with the tax themselves. Florida gives them three ways to verify a resale purchase, and knowing which one applies helps the transaction go smoothly:7Florida Department of Revenue. Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax
- A copy of your current Annual Resale Certificate, from the current calendar year, kept in the supplier’s file.
- A single-transaction authorization number, which the supplier obtains through the department’s online Certificate Verification System, by calling 877-357-3725, or through the FL Tax-Verify mobile app. Each number covers one purchase.8Florida Department of Revenue. Mobile Applications
- An annual vendor authorization number, obtained at the start of the calendar year, which covers every resale purchase that customer makes from that supplier for the whole year.
The annual vendor number is the practical option for regular wholesale relationships. It also protects the seller: an authorization number obtained in good faith shields the supplier from liability if the buyer’s certificate later turns out to be invalid.
Florida accepts the Multistate Tax Commission’s Uniform Sales and Use Tax Resale Certificate from out-of-state buyers, but the selling dealer still has to obtain a Florida resale authorization number using the buyer’s Florida certificate number.9Multistate Tax Commission. Uniform Sales and Use Tax Resale Certificate – Multijurisdiction The MTC form alone is not enough.
Renewal and Expiration
Every Annual Resale Certificate expires on December 31 of the year printed on it.7Florida Department of Revenue. Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax There is no separate renewal application. As long as you remain an active, registered dealer, the department automatically issues your new certificate for the following year.
New certificates for the upcoming year become available on the department’s website each November. Paper filers receive their certificate by mail with the annual coupon book. Electronic filers log in to the department’s online portal and print the updated certificate themselves.7Florida Department of Revenue. Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax Print it before January. Suppliers should not be accepting a certificate that still shows last year’s date.
One exception to the calendar-year cycle: businesses that register in mid-October or later receive a certificate effective from the registration date through the end of the following calendar year.7Florida Department of Revenue. Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax Register on November 5, 2026, and your first certificate covers November 5, 2026 through December 31, 2027.
Penalties for Misuse
Florida treats resale certificate fraud seriously. Using the certificate to evade sales tax on personal items, business equipment, or anything not genuinely intended for resale carries both civil and criminal consequences.10Florida Department of Revenue. Florida Annual Resale Certificate for Sales Tax
The civil penalty is a mandatory 200% of the tax that should have been paid. Fraudulent use is also a third-degree felony under Florida Statute 212.085, which carries up to five years in prison.11Florida Public Law. Florida Statutes 212.085 – Fraudulent Claim of Exemption; Penalties The statute targets intentional evasion rather than honest mistakes, but a pattern of non-resale purchases on the books tends to blur that distinction during an audit.
Records to Keep
The department’s standard audit lookback period is three years, and it can extend further when returns are missing or substantially incorrect.12Florida Department of Revenue. What to Expect from a Florida Sales and Use Tax Audit Every tax-exempt purchase you make needs documentation that will still be accessible that far out.
For buyers, that means invoices and purchase orders for each exempt purchase, along with records showing the items were resold. For sellers, it means keeping a copy of the current resale certificate, or the transaction or annual vendor authorization number, for each exempt sale. Retain everything for at least three years from the date of the transaction.
During an audit, the department matches your tax-exempt purchase records against your sales records. If you bought $50,000 in inventory tax-free but can only account for $30,000 in resales, expect questions about the $20,000 gap and a likely assessment of tax, interest, and penalties on it. Organized records are the single best defense against a surprise bill.