Most suppliers and wholesalers who deal with retail clients will be presented with resale certificates on a regular basis. Since it is the retailers who will be collecting sales tax from end user consumers, they want to be able to purchase their goods so sales tax is not paid twice. While most retailers will follow the rules, some may knowingly or unknowingly provide you with a resale certificate that is not valid. So what happens if you accept a tax exemption certificate that is no good? Well you may have the responsibility of paying the sales tax on those items. Therefore, it is strongly recommended to verify resale certificates for any states you have nexus in whenever possible.

Although states vary in their protocols and procedures, the verification process is usually done either by phone or online. You can go to the Department of Revenue of the specified state to see where to verify a resale certificate.