Maryland: Sales Tax Handbook
Maryland Sales Tax Exemption / Resale Forms
5 PDFs
If you are a retailer making purchases for resale, or need to make a purchase that is exempt from the Maryland sales tax, you need the appropriate Maryland sales tax exemption certificate before you can begin making tax-free purchases. This page explains how to make tax-free purchases in Maryland, and lists five Maryland sales tax exemption forms available for download.
Printable Maryland Exemption Certificates
We have five Maryland 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.
Maryland 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.
How to use sales tax exemption certificates in Maryland
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 Maryland provides certain forms to be used when you wish to purchase tax-exempt items such as prescription medicines.
The "Maryland Sales and Use Tax Horse Breeding Exemption Certificate" should be utilized by a farmer in the business of breeding horses to purchase items for use in this field.
The "Suggested Blanket Resale Certificate" is meant to purchase items that are either intended for resale, or will be used as an ingredient or part of any tangible product intended for sale.
These documents can be downloaded on this page.
To apply the certificate, the buyer must first present the seller with their written certificate, which legally documents the exemption. The certificate should include the date it was created, the signature of the buyer or an employee or agent who signed on behalf of the buyer, both the seller's and buyer's addresses and names, the legal basis of the exemption being utilized, the buyer's tax registration or business license number, and a description of the merchandise that the buyer wishes to purchase.
How long is my Maryland sales tax exemption certificate good for?
Each exemption certificate expires precisely five years after it's issuance, with the exception of governmental entity certificates. Religious exemption numbers may be utilized.
Can I use a blanket resale exemption certificate in Maryland?
Maryland 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.
Acceptance of uniform sales tax certificates in Maryland
Maryland 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 Maryland 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 Maryland.
The following guidelines are provided for the use of the MTC Uniform Sales Tax Certificate in Maryland:
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