Card show sales tax by state

Pick a state

• Arizona 5.6%
• California 7.25%
• Colorado 2.9%
• Florida 6%
• Georgia 4%
• Illinois 6.25%
• Indiana 7%
• Massachusetts 6.25%
• Michigan 6%
• Minnesota 6.875%
• Missouri 4.225%
• Nevada 6.85%
• New Jersey 6.625%
• New York 4%
• North Carolina 4.75%
• Ohio 5.75%
• Pennsylvania 6%
• Tennessee 7%
• Texas 6.25%
• Virginia 5.3%
• Washington 6.5%

What you need, state by state

State	State rate	Registration	Checked
Arizona	5.6%	Arizona TPT license, unless the vendor sells through a promoter that holds the license and runs all sales through its central cash register.	Partly unverified
California	7.25%	Temporary seller's permit (CDTFA).	From the state
Colorado	2.9%	Colorado Special Event License (application DR 0589), unless the event organizer holds a license to file for its sellers.	From the state
Florida	6%	Sales and use tax Certificate of Registration (Form DR-11).	Partly unverified
Georgia	4%	Georgia sales and use tax registration, or for one-off sellers the Miscellaneous Sales Event form (DOR site links it as FS-32 in one…	Partly unverified
Illinois	6.25%	There is no 'ROT-E'.	From the state
Indiana	7%	Registered Retail Merchant Certificate (RRMC) from the Indiana DOR, required before any retail sale, including by transient merchants…	From the state
Massachusetts	6.25%	Sales/use tax vendor registration with DOR through MassTaxConnect (Form ST-1 certificate).	Partly unverified
Michigan	6%	No license is required for retail sales at one or two events per calendar year: file Form 5089 (Concessionaire's Sales Tax Return and…	Partly unverified
Minnesota	6.875%	Minnesota sales tax registration, obtained before the event begins.	From the state
Missouri	4.225%	Missouri sales tax license.	From the state
Nevada	6.85%	No vendor permit for occasional sellers.	From the state
New Jersey	6.625%	NJ-REG registration and Certificate of Authority (Form CA-1).	From the state
New York	4%	Regular Certificate of Authority.	From the state
North Carolina	4.75%	Certificate of Registration from NCDOR.	From the state
Ohio	5.75%	Transient Vendor's License (Form ST-1T), issued by the Ohio Department of Taxation.	Partly unverified
Pennsylvania	6%	Pennsylvania Sales, Use and Hotel Occupancy Tax License.	From the state
Tennessee	7%	Special event vendor registration with the TN DOR, done through a request on the revenue.support.tn.gov portal.	Partly unverified
Texas	6.25%	Regular Texas Sales and Use Tax Permit.	From the state
Virginia	5.3%	Sellers at a few events a year don't need a sales tax account.	From the state
Washington	6.5%	Temporary Registration Certificate for out-of-state businesses with no more than two events per year in WA, each lasting no more than a…	From the state

"From the state" means the permit and filing facts were read on the state revenue agency's own pages on 2026-10-17. "Partly unverified" means at least one fact rests on an excerpt or an older document; each state page says which.

Rules that apply almost everywhere

• Register before the show. A one-off weekend still counts as selling in that state.
• Charge the rate for the venue's address: state plus county, city and district taxes.
• Tax-inclusive prices are allowed in many states, but the tax inside the price is still owed: a $100 sale at 8.25% tax-included holds $7.62 of tax.
• Buying inventory for resale? A resale certificate lets you skip sales tax on it; selling to a dealer, collect their certificate instead of tax.
• Occasional-sale exemptions are meant for garage-sale sellers, not vendors who set up at shows regularly.

The 2025 and 2026 National Sports Collectors Conventions were both held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL (2026 dates: July 29 to Aug 2, 2026), so Illinois special-event rules applied: the organizer registers the event with the IDOR Special Events Unit and vendors report on Form IDOR-6-SETR at the Rosemont rate. Venue facts come from hobby press, not a government source. The 2027+ location (Atlantic City and Atlanta were the other options in the dealer vote) was not verified. Read the full card show sales tax guide, and log each show in the ledger to track tax owed against tax collected.

Figures checked against the sources below on October 17, 2026. Calculators and checklists, not tax advice.