Amend ct sales tax return

Who Must Register and File the Sales and Use Tax Return

You are required to register with the Department of Revenue Services (DRS) for sales and use tax if you intend to engage in any of the following activities in Connecticut:

Retailers that are required to file the Sales and Use Tax Return may register online through myconneCT. Go to myconneCT, under Business Registration, click New Business/Need a CT Registration Number? There is a $100 fee for registering to collect sales and use tax. After registering, you will receive a Sales and Use Tax Permit that should be displayed conspicuously for your customers to see.

If you purchase an existing business, you may not use the Sales and Use Tax Permit issued to the previous owner; you must obtain a new Sales and Use Tax Permit. If you will have more than one location, you must register to obtain a Sales and Use Tax Permit for each location.

Use myconneCT to file taxes, make payments, view filing history, and communicate with the agency simply and more efficiently on virtually any mobile device, including laptops, tablets, and smartphones, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Sales and Use Tax

You must obtain a Sales and Use Tax Permit from DRS if you intend to engage in any of the following activities in Connecticut:

You must obtain a Sales and Use Tax Permit from DRS if you will be selling at a flea market, craft show, trade show, antique show, fair, etc. in Connecticut even if you will only be making sales for one day. You must display the permit prominently at your booth or table.

The requirement to obtain a permit applies to individuals, corporations, partnerships, and all other business entities that will make sales in this state, regardless of the number of sales made or the amount of tax collected. These rules do not apply to casual sales or isolated sales, which are infrequent sales of a nonrecurring nature made by a person not engaged in the business of selling tangible personal property or taxable services. Manufacturers and wholesalers, as well as retailers, must obtain a permit. See Informational Publication 2018(5), Getting Started in Business.

All building contractors, including subcontractors, must obtain a Sales and Use Tax Permit from DRS prior to providing any services, even if the services provided are not taxable or if the contract is with a tax-exempt entity. For more information about contractors, see Informational Publication 2018(2), Building Contractors’ Guide to Sales and Use Taxes.

Note: Failure to obtain a tax permit will result in a fine of not more than $500 or imprisonment of not more than three months, or both, for each offense.

Civil penalties will be imposed for failure to obtain or renew a seller's permit. A penalty of $250 applies for the first day the person engages in business without a seller's permit, and a penalty of $100 for each following day that the person engages in business without a seller's permit. The penalty may be waived if the person proves that the failure to obtain or renew the seller's permit was due to reasonable cause and was not intentional or due to neglect.

Any business that purchases goods or taxable services for use in Connecticut and does not pay Connecticut sales tax must pay the Connecticut use tax. The use tax rates are identical to the sales tax rates. See Informational Publication 2020(9), Q & A on the Connecticut Use Tax for Businesses and Professions. If purchases are made as an individual and not in connection with a business, see Individual Use Tax.

Per Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-408(4), the Department of Revenue Services reminds retailers that Connecticut law prohibits a retailer from advertising that the sales tax, or any portion of the sales tax, on merchandise will be paid or absorbed by the retailer. Connecticut law also prohibits a retailer from advertising that the sales tax will not be added to the sales price of merchandise or that, if added, the sales tax or any portion of the sales tax will be refunded. Any retailer violating these laws will be fined $500 for each offense.

Business Use Tax

A business not required to register to collect sales and use tax should still register to pay business use tax. If purchases are made in connection with a trade, occupation, business or profession, use myconneCT to register for business use tax. Report taxable purchases on Form OS-114, Connecticut Sales and Use Tax Return, for the reporting period in which the taxable purchase was made.

Tax Rates

The sales tax rate of 6.35% applies to the retail sale, lease, or rental of most goods (including digital goods, which are described in Special Notice 2019(8), Sales and Use Taxes on Digital Goods and Canned or Prewritten Software) and taxable services. However, see Special Sales Tax Rates Apply to Certain Sales.

There are no additional sales taxes imposed by local jurisdictions in Connecticut.

Special Sales Tax Rates Apply to Certain Sales

While the general sales and use tax rate is 6.35%, other rates are imposed under Connecticut law as follows: