In Illinois you will file the Reg-1 Form which can be found on https://mytax.illinois.gov/_/ (Click on "Registration" then "Register a New Business") I highly recommend submitting this form through the website rather than mailing it in.
Whether you are a wholesaler(selling to a retailer who will then re-sell your product to the final consumer) or reseller(selling directly to the final consumer) - you will want to fill out the Reg-1 Form. Once you file this form you will get your IL Business Authorization (AKA Business Registration AKA Resale ID AKA Tax Exemption -- don't ask me why there are so many names for this, it seems like everyone calls it something different but they are all the same thing)
You will have the option to list different locations for your Resale ID. Vendors that cook at United Kitchen must include our address as one of the locations because they will also be selling their product at our location. Some other locations to include would be your company address and any farmer's markets where you are selling your product. You will also create an account on the MyTaxIL Website which is where you can file your sales tax quarterly.
Pro-Tip: If your corporation is located in Illinois you will need to put a "D" before your IL file number, if it is located in another state you will put an "F" - for some reason no one tells you this but it is necessary because you won't be able to submit your form without one of those letters before your file number! The D stands for Domestic and the F stands for Foreign, if you're curious
Once you have this little blue certificate you will be able to purchase your ingredients without paying sales tax on them! This is a particularly big bonus in Cook County where the sales tax can be 10%! The reason for the sales tax exemption is that you will be charging sales tax to your customers on your final product - so if you paid sales tax on your ingredients as well it would essentially be double-taxed.
In order to make a tax exempt purchase you will first want to talk to customer service at the retailer - every store seems to have a different way of handling this. For example, Restaurant Depot will not even allow you to shop there unless you have a Resale ID - the first time you shop there they will make a new account for you and give you your own Restaurant Depot card (Be sure to bring your blue Resale ID certificate with you the first time you go to any store!) Whole Foods on the other hand just enters in the number from your certificate at the register each time you want to make a tax exempt purchase so you need to bring that with you each time. Sam's club operates like Restaurant Depot where your Resale ID is on your Club Card, but you can choose at the register if you are making a sales tax exempt purchase or not. At Walmart you will need to go to Customer Service to get registered as tax exempt, they give you a paper card that has their reference number for your tax exempt account, you will need to bring that card with you each time and give it to the cashier when you make a purchase.
Let me know if I forgot anything, or if you have further questions about this topic! :)
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