If you are a retailer making purchases for resale, or need to make a purchase that is exempt from the Illinois sales tax, you need the appropriate Illinois sales tax exemption certificate before you can begin making tax-free purchases. This page explains how to make tax-free purchases in Illinois, and lists five Illinois sales tax exemption forms available for download.
We have five Illinois sales tax exemption forms available for you to print or save as a PDF file. If any of these links are broken, or you can't find the form you need, please let us know. You can find resale certificates for other states here.
Illinois allows the use of uniform sales tax exemption certificates, which are general exemption certificates that can be used across multiple states. You can find more info about these uniform certificates at the bottom of this page.
A sales tax exemption certificate is a form you can fill out yourself certifying that you meet the qualifications outlined for making sales-tax-free purchases. You will need to present this certificate to the vendor from whom you are making the exempt purchase - it is up to the vendor to verify that you are indeed qualified to make a tax-exempt purchase.
The state of Illinois provides several forms to be used when you wish to purchase tax-exempt items.
The "Equipment Exemption Certificate" should be utilized when purchasing equipment which will be used primarily in the process of manufacturing or assembling of tangible personal property for wholesale or retail sale or lease, in the production agriculture, or in the production of graphic arts.
The "Certificate of Resale" is intended for use when items are bough specifically for resale.
These forms may be downloaded on this page.
In addition to basic contact information, a registration number, resale number, or out of state certification of resale must be provided to the Illinois Department of Revenue.
The period of time in which the exemption certificate is considered to be valid varies depending on the user, but blanket certificates should be updated every three years. It must be noted that all manufacturers are not permitted to utilize blanket exemption certificates. Additionally, the certificate does not cover sales for resales, or for the subsequent lease. Illinois's resale or registration number must be included in all cases.
Illinois does permit the use of a blanket resale certificate, which means a single certificate on file with the vendor can be re-used for all exempt purchases made from that vendor. A new certificate does not need to be made for each transaction.
Illinois is a member of the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement, an interstate consortium with the goal of making compliance with sales taxes as simple as possible in member states.
Because Illinois is a member of this agreement, buyers can use the Multistate Tax Commission (MTC) Uniform Sales Tax Certificate when making qualifying sales-tax-exempt purchases from vendors in Illinois.
The following guidelines are provided for the use of the MTC Uniform Sales Tax Certificate in Illinois:
Illinois does not permit the use of this certificate to claim a resale exemption for the purchase of a taxable service for resale. Use of this certificate in Illinois is subject to the provisions of 86 Ill. Adm. Code Ch.I, Sec. 130.1405. Illinois does not have an exemption on sales of property for subsequent ease or rental, nor does the use of this certificate for claiming resale purchases of services have any application in Illinois. The registration number to be supplied next to Illinois on page 1 of this certificate must be the Illinois registration or resale number; no other state's registration number is acceptable. “Good faith†is not the standard of care to be exercised by a retailer in Illinois. A retailer in Illinois is not required to determine if the purchaser actually intends to resell the item. Instead, a retailer must confirm that the purchaser has a valid registration or resale number at the time of purchase. If a purchaser fails to provide a certificate of resale at the time of sale in Illinois, the seller must charge the purchaser tax. While there is no statutory requirement that blanket certificates of resale be renewed at certain intervals, blanket certificates should be updated periodically, and no less frequently than every three years.
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