Delaware sales tax on invoices (2026 guide)

Delaware is one of the few states with no sales tax. The Division of Revenue states plainly that Delaware does not impose a state or local sales tax, so an invoice to a Delaware customer has no sales tax line.

That doesn't mean Delaware businesses are untaxed. Instead of a sales tax paid by the customer, Delaware charges a gross receipts tax paid by the seller. The Division says this tax is imposed on the seller or service provider and may not be passed on to the consumer. This guide explains what that means for your invoices, and what to do when you sell outside Delaware.

Delaware tax rates

Petroleum products have a variable gross receipts rate that the Division says can be as high as 2.4218%. Your rate depends on your business activity — retailers, wholesalers, and service providers each have their own rate and their own exclusion. The Division publishes a "Tax Tips" sheet for each business type with the exact figures.

Is anything you sell subject to sales tax in Delaware?

No. Goods and services sold in Delaware carry no sales tax, so you never charge a Delaware customer sales tax.

What Delaware does tax is your total gross receipts. The Division describes it as a tax on the seller of goods (tangible or otherwise) or the provider of services, and gross receipts can't be reduced by the cost of goods sold, labor, interest, delivery costs, or state or federal taxes. Most businesses get a monthly or quarterly exclusion, which the Division says generally starts at $100,000 per month and can be as high as $1,250,000.

For example, the Division's Tax Tips for occupations and general services lists a gross receipts rate of 0.3983%, with the first $100,000 per month ($300,000 per quarter) of fees excluded. Many freelancers and small service businesses fall below that exclusion, but they still have filing obligations.

Business license and gross receipts filing

The Division's business license FAQ says that any person or entity conducting a trade or business in Delaware is required to get a Delaware business license. Licenses expire on December 31 (or December 31 of the third year for three-year licenses).

Once licensed, you:

1. file gross receipts tax returns monthly or quarterly, depending on your total gross receipts — all new businesses start as quarterly filers;
2. report receipts separately for each business activity you carry on (for example, providing a service and also retailing); and
3. round the tax due to the nearest dollar, as the Division requires.

Because there's no sales tax, Delaware has no sales tax permit and no remote-seller sales tax threshold.

What a Delaware invoice should show

• your business name and address,
• the customer's name and address,
• a unique invoice number and the invoice date,
• a description and price for each item or service, and
• the total due.

What it should not show is a "sales tax" line for Delaware, or a line passing on your gross receipts tax. The gross receipts tax is your cost of doing business; if you need to cover it, build it into your prices. In Invoice Native, leave Tax unticked on lines for Delaware customers.

Resale and exemption certificates

Delaware doesn't use sales tax resale or exemption certificates. The Division's exemption certificate page says that, with no state or local sales taxes, sales tax exemption certificates and reseller certificates are not applicable to Delaware, and that sales for resale are not exempt from the license and gross receipts taxes.

There is one form wholesalers should know: Form 373, Wholesale Exemption Certificate. The Division's FAQ says a Delaware wholesaler isn't liable for gross receipts tax when an out-of-state customer takes possession in Delaware for delivery and use outside the state — but only if Form 373 is completed before or at the time of the sale.

If your customer is in another state and claims an exemption there, follow that state's rules. See how to invoice a tax-exempt customer.

A worked example

Suppose you run a consulting practice in Wilmington and invoice a Delaware client $5,000 for a project. There's no sales tax, so the invoice total is simply $5,000.00.

Now say your total fees for the month are $120,000. Using the occupations and general services rate from the Division's Tax Tips:

• taxable gross receipts: $120,000 − $100,000 exclusion = $20,000
• gross receipts tax: $20,000 × 0.3983% = $79.66, rounded to $80

You pay that $80 to the Division of Revenue yourself. None of it appears on your clients' invoices.

Selling to customers in other states

Delaware's lack of sales tax only covers Delaware. If you ship goods or deliver taxable services to customers in another state, that state's rules apply. Since the Supreme Court's 2018 decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, states can require out-of-state sellers to register and collect their sales tax once sales into the state pass a threshold the state sets. If you sell across state lines regularly, check each state's threshold and registration rules, and charge that state's rate on those invoices.

On the Delaware side, the Division's FAQ says you don't owe gross receipts tax on goods you ship directly to a customer outside Delaware, as long as you keep documentation of the interstate shipment. If the customer picks up the goods in Delaware, the sale is generally treated as a Delaware sale unless the wholesale Form 373 exception applies.

Common mistakes on Delaware invoices

• Adding a "sales tax" line for Delaware customers.
• Passing the gross receipts tax on to customers as a separate charge.
• Assuming no sales tax means no filing. Licensed businesses still file gross receipts returns, even when the exclusion means no tax is due.
• Forgetting other states' rules when you sell or ship outside Delaware.
• Not keeping shipping records for goods sent out of state.

Quick checklist for Delaware invoices

• ✅ Delaware business license in place and renewed by December 31
• ✅ No sales tax line on invoices to Delaware customers
• ✅ Gross receipts tax treated as your own cost, not a line item
• ✅ Gross receipts returns filed monthly or quarterly as assigned
• ✅ Other states' sales tax rules checked for out-of-state customers