Do You Need a Reseller Permit to Sell Online?

Here's the short answer: if you sell only through marketplaces like Poshmark, Mercari, Whatnot, or eBay, you usually do not need your own reseller permit, because marketplace facilitator laws make the platform responsible for collecting and remitting sales tax on those sales. If you sell through your own channel, like a Shopify store, you generally do need a permit in any state where you have nexus. The details below cover the exceptions, the costs, and exactly how to apply.

Key Takeaways

• "Reseller permit," "seller's permit," and "sales tax permit" are different state names for the same thing: your registration to collect sales tax.
• Every state with a statewide sales tax now has a marketplace facilitator law, making the marketplace responsible for collecting tax on your marketplace sales (Streamlined Sales Tax).
• Texas says marketplace-only remote sellers don't need a Texas permit; California has a similar rule but still requires registration if your total California sales top $500,000 (Texas Comptroller, CDTFA).
• Permits are free in Texas and California, though a security bond or deposit is sometimes required.
• Selling without a required permit is a misdemeanor in both Texas and California, and in Texas each day of operation counts as a separate offense.

What Is a Reseller Permit (and Is It Different From a Seller's Permit)?

A reseller permit and a seller's permit are the same document with different names. States each pick their own label for the registration that lets you legally collect sales tax from customers.

Texas calls it a "sales and use tax permit." Anyone engaged in business in Texas who sells or leases tangible personal property, or sells taxable services there, must hold one (Texas Comptroller). California calls it a "seller's permit" and requires it for anyone "doing business in California" who intends to sell or lease tangible personal property subject to sales tax at retail (CDTFA). Florida issues a Certificate of Registration, Form DR-11 (Florida DOR).

Different names, same job. What trips up new sellers is a second document that sounds almost identical: the resale certificate.

Definition: permit vs. resale certificate. A reseller permit (also called a seller's permit or sales tax permit) is your state registration to collect sales tax from customers. A resale certificate is the exemption document you give suppliers so you can buy inventory tax-free. In most states, you need the permit and its taxpayer number first before you can issue a resale certificate.

Here's the side-by-side:

One common mistake: showing a supplier your permit instead of a certificate. Texas is explicit that "the customer's sales tax permit number or a copy of the customer's permit is not a substitute for a resale certificate" (Texas Comptroller). If you want the full walkthrough of how certificates work, see our resale certificates explained guide.

Do Marketplace Sellers (Poshmark, Mercari, Whatnot, eBay) Need One?

Usually, no. Every state with a statewide sales tax, plus Washington, D.C. and Alaska's local ARSSTC jurisdictions, has a marketplace facilitator law that shifts the collection job to the marketplace itself (Streamlined Sales Tax). Under these laws, when someone buys your item on a facilitator platform, the marketplace is the party responsible for charging the buyer sales tax and sending it to the state. You never touch that money.

Texas spells this out directly: "A remote seller who only sells through a marketplace provider that certifies they are collecting and reporting sales and use tax on the remote seller's behalf is not required to hold a Texas tax permit" (Texas Comptroller). One catch: you still have to keep records of your marketplace sales for at least four years.

California works the same way, with a twist. Under its Marketplace Facilitator Act, the facilitator "is considered the seller and retailer for each sale facilitated through its marketplace," and you don't need to register if all of your retail sales are facilitated by a registered marketplace (CDTFA). But if your total California sales, including marketplace sales, exceed $500,000 in the current or preceding calendar year, you must register anyway.

So a Poshmark-only or Whatnot-only seller typically doesn't need a permit for those sales. For platform-specific details on what Poshmark handles for you, see our Poshmark sales tax guide.

When Do You Need Your Own Permit?

You need your own permit when you sell outside a marketplace in a state where you have nexus. The most common triggers:

1. You sell through your own store. Shopify, WooCommerce, your own website, in-person markets: none of these are marketplace facilitators. You are the retailer, so you collect the tax, and that requires a permit.
2. You have a physical presence in a state. In your home state, simply being "engaged in business" there while selling taxable goods generally requires registration (Texas Comptroller, CDTFA).
3. You cross an economic nexus threshold. Remote sellers need a Texas permit only above $500,000 in Texas revenue in the preceding 12 months (Texas Comptroller). California's threshold is also $500,000 in total California sales (CDTFA). Most states set lower bars, so check each state where you ship. Our guide to economic nexus explains how these thresholds work.
4. You want to buy inventory tax-free. Suppliers ask for a resale certificate, and in most states you need the permit's taxpayer number to issue one. Many casual resellers get a home-state permit for this reason alone, even if a marketplace collects on all their sales.

Mixed sellers are the group that gets surprised. If you sell on eBay and run a Shopify store, the marketplace rules cover your eBay sales, but your Shopify sales are on you.

Not sure which states you've actually triggered? Run Taxero's free nexus check to find out which states you actually owe before you register anywhere.

What Does a Permit Cost?

In the big seller states, the permit itself is free. Here's what the state agencies say:

The real cost of a permit isn't the application fee. It's the ongoing obligation: once you hold a permit, you have to file returns on the state's schedule, even for periods with zero sales.

What Happens If You Sell Without One?

Selling without a required permit is a criminal offense in the two biggest seller states, not just a paperwork problem.

Texas. Under Tax Code § 151.708, retailing without a permit is a Class C misdemeanor for a first offense. Penalties escalate with repeat offenses: Class B (fine up to $2,000), then Class A (fine up to $4,000), then Class A plus up to one year in jail. The part that should get your attention: each day of operation counts as a separate offense. A month of unpermitted selling isn't one violation, it's thirty.

California. Under Revenue and Taxation Code § 6071, selling without a permit is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $5,000 fine and/or one year in jail, on top of the back tax, interest, and penalties you'd owe anyway (CDTFA Pub. 166).

Misusing a resale certificate carries its own ladder of penalties. In Texas, it ranges from a Class C misdemeanor when the tax evaded is under $20 all the way up to a second-degree felony at $20,000 or more (Texas Comptroller). Don't hand a supplier a resale certificate for personal purchases.

To be clear: if you're a marketplace-only seller in a state like Texas that doesn't require you to register, you're not "selling without a permit." These penalties apply when you're required to hold one and don't.

How Do You Get a Reseller Permit?

The process is similar in most states and often takes under an hour:

1. Figure out where you need to register. Start with your home state, then any state where you've crossed an economic nexus threshold with direct (non-marketplace) sales. Our state guides for Texas nexus and California nexus cover the two biggest ones.
2. Gather your details. Expect to provide your legal name or entity name, SSN or EIN, business address, and a description of what you sell.
3. Apply on the state tax agency's website. Texas uses the Comptroller's eSystems portal (Comptroller); California registers you through CDTFA's free online system (CDTFA); Florida uses the online Florida Business Tax Application or paper Form DR-1 (Florida DOR). For a step-by-step Texas walkthrough, see how to register for a Texas sales tax permit.
4. Wait for approval. Texas approval typically takes 2 to 3 weeks (Comptroller).
5. Set up your filing calendar. The state assigns a filing frequency. Missing returns, even zero-dollar ones, creates problems fast.

Once your permit is active, you can issue resale certificates to suppliers and start collecting tax on your direct sales.

FAQ

Do I need a reseller permit to sell on Poshmark or Mercari?

Usually not for the marketplace sales themselves. All states with a statewide sales tax have marketplace facilitator laws that make the platform responsible for collecting and remitting the tax (Streamlined Sales Tax). Texas explicitly exempts marketplace-only remote sellers from holding a permit (Texas Comptroller). You may still want a home-state permit to buy inventory tax-free with a resale certificate.

Is a resale certificate the same as a seller's permit?

No. The permit is your registration to collect sales tax; the resale certificate is the form you give suppliers to buy inventory tax-free. In Texas, the resale certificate (Form 01-339) requires your taxpayer number from the permit, and the permit itself can't substitute for the certificate (Texas Comptroller). More detail in our resale certificates guide.

How much does a reseller permit cost?

Texas and California charge no fee for the permit, though both may require a security bond or deposit (Texas Comptroller, CDTFA). Florida registration is done through its online Business Tax Application or paper Form DR-1 (Florida DOR).

I sell on eBay and on my own Shopify store. What do I need?

eBay collects tax on your eBay sales under marketplace facilitator laws. Your Shopify sales are direct sales, so you need a permit in your home state and in any state where those direct sales give you economic nexus. Note California's caveat: if your total California sales (marketplace included) exceed $500,000, you must register even if a marketplace facilitates everything (CDTFA).

The Bottom Line

Marketplace-only sellers can usually relax: facilitator laws in every state with a statewide sales tax put the collection job on platforms like Poshmark, Mercari, Whatnot, and eBay. The moment you sell direct, through Shopify or anywhere else, the job shifts to you, and that means a permit in each state where you have nexus. The permits themselves are typically free. Skipping a required one is not: it's a misdemeanor in Texas and California, and Texas counts every day as a new offense.

The hard part isn't getting a permit. It's knowing which states require one. Run Taxero's free nexus check to find out which states you actually owe, then register only where you need to.

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This article is for general information only and is not tax, legal, or accounting advice. Rules change and your situation is specific, so consult a tax professional or the state's own guidance.