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Short answer: A resale certificate is a form a business gives its supplier to show that it is buying goods to resell, so the supplier does not collect sales tax on that purchase. For a medical supply distributor, it is the buyer’s document, it is kept by the supplier, and the state, not the federal government, decides how it works. An EIN is not a substitute for it. This page is general information, not tax or legal advice.
Definition and scope
A resale certificate (also called a resale exemption certificate) is a purchaser-completed form. Under the Streamlined Sales Tax (SST) system, the purchaser gives the completed certificate to the supplier and keeps a copy for its own records. The SST governing board states: “Do not send exemption certificates to the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board or to the states.” The seller’s side is equally simple: when it holds a valid certificate for a sale sourced to a member state, “the seller should not collect sales or use tax on that transaction.”
The same form concept applies whether the goods are exam gloves, wound dressings or lab consumables. What changes is the state rule behind it, not the product category. This page covers the document itself. It does not say which medical products are taxable or exempt in any state; that is set state by state.
What is a uniform sales and use tax certificate?
A uniform certificate is a single multi-state exemption form, so a buyer does not need a different state form for each supplier location. The Streamlined Sales Tax certificate is accepted by all 24 Streamlined member states (23 full members plus Tennessee as an associate member), according to the SST governing board’s exemption page (checked 2026-10-30). Washington State’s Department of Revenue also recognizes the “Uniform Sales & Use Tax Resale Certificate – Multijurisdiction” as an approved exemption certificate.
Two limits apply. First, not every state allows every exemption listed on the form, so a buyer should check each state’s requirements. Second, Washington’s page notes that its SST certificate was updated in December 2021 and that older certificates need not be replaced.
How to get a resale certificate
In practice a distributor fills in the form rather than “applying” to a central office. The steps below follow the SST and Washington Department of Revenue pages:
- Decide which form the supplier’s state accepts (a state form, the SST certificate, or the multijurisdiction uniform certificate).
- If the state where you claim the exemption requires registration, enter that state’s ID number. The SST page says: where registration is required in the state where exemption is claimed, that state’s ID number goes on the form, including for drop shipments.
- Give the completed certificate to the supplier and keep a copy.
- Do not file it with the state or the SST board.
Whether you must first hold a seller’s registration depends on the state. Washington, for example, requires businesses that must register to use either a Reseller Permit or an SST certificate with a reseller permit number on it. Businesses that are not required to register can use the SST Exemption Certificate or the Uniform Resale Certificate – Multijurisdiction (Washington Department of Revenue, checked 2026-10-30).
Is an EIN the same as a resale certificate?
No. The IRS describes an EIN as “a federal tax ID number for businesses, tax-exempt organizations and other entities” (IRS, Employer ID Numbers, checked 2026-10-30). The IRS page does not describe it as a sales tax document. A resale certificate is a state-level exemption form that you give a supplier, and in some states it carries a separate state ID or reseller permit number.
| Document | What it is | Who issues or sets it | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| EIN | Federal tax ID for businesses, tax-exempt organizations and other entities | IRS | IRS, Employer ID Numbers |
| State reseller permit or state ID | State registration number; where registration is required it is entered on the certificate (Washington lists a Reseller Permit as an option for registered businesses) | The state | SST exemptions page; Washington DOR |
| Resale or exemption certificate | Form the buyer completes and gives to the supplier to buy without sales tax; the buyer keeps a copy | Completed by the purchaser on a state, SST or multijurisdiction form | SST exemptions page; Washington DOR |
How to avoid paying sales tax as a reseller
The lawful route is the exemption itself: buy goods for resale with a valid resale certificate on file with the supplier. Washington’s Department of Revenue says buyers of goods for resale must use an approved exemption certificate to buy wholesale without paying sales tax. A resale certificate covers goods bought for resale; how a state treats goods a business keeps for its own use is a question for that state’s revenue department.
Where it matters for labs, clinics and supply decisions
A distributor-side file check based on the SST and Washington Department of Revenue pages:
- Is the form accepted by the state of the sale? (Not all states allow all exemptions listed on the SST form.)
- Is the right state ID or reseller number on it, where the state requires registration?
- Does the supplier hold a completed copy, and do you hold your own?
- Is the certificate current? (Washington says older SST certificates need not be replaced after the December 2021 update.)
- Georgia is the SST page’s example of a state that requires the seller to verify the purchaser’s ID number; other member states generally do not.
Buyers at hospitals, universities and labs often meet a different question: whether their own organization is exempt. That is a separate legal basis from resale. See our guide on medical and laboratory supply wholesale pricing for how exempt-entity status differs from a resale exemption. For the purchasing side of a supplier account, see net 30 payment terms and vendor account verification, group purchasing organizations and purchasing cooperatives.
Common misunderstandings
Resale exemption, exempt-entity exemption and product exemption are different things
A resale exemption turns on what the buyer will do with the goods (resell them). An exempt-entity exemption turns on who the buyer is, for example a nonprofit or educational body. A product exemption turns on what the goods are. Each is set by the state, and this page makes no claim that any medical product falls under a product exemption.
You do not send the certificate to the state
The SST board says certificates are not sent to it or to the states. They go to the supplier.
An EIN does not stand in for the certificate
See the table above: the IRS page does not describe an EIN as a sales tax document.
Frequently asked questions
What is a uniform sales and use tax certificate?
A multi-state exemption form. The SST certificate is accepted by all 24 Streamlined member states; Washington also accepts the Uniform Sales & Use Tax Resale Certificate – Multijurisdiction. Each state still decides which exemptions it allows on the form.
Is an EIN the same as a resale certificate?
No. An EIN is a federal tax ID. A resale certificate is a purchaser-completed exemption form given to the supplier, and some states also require a state ID or reseller permit number on it.
How to avoid paying sales tax as a reseller?
By giving the supplier a valid resale certificate for goods you will resell. It is a legal exemption, not an avoidance method, and it depends on the state’s rules.
Sources
- Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, exemption certificates page: https://www.streamlinedsalestax.org/Shared-Pages/exemptions- (checked 2026-10-30)
- Washington State Department of Revenue, approved exemption certificates: https://dor.wa.gov/taxes-rates/retail-sales-tax/reseller-permits/approved-exemption-certificates (checked 2026-10-30)
- Internal Revenue Service, Employer ID Numbers: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/employer-id-numbers (checked 2026-10-30)
