What is a resale certificate called in Massachusetts?

Massachusetts calls it the Sales Tax Resale Certificate (Form ST-4). The buyer fills in and signs the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate and gives it to the seller.

Resale certificate · Massachusetts

How to Use the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate

The short answer. The Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate (Form ST-4) is for goods bought for resale. The buyer fills it in. Massachusetts requires its own form rather than a document you draw up yourself. That applies to a buyer registered in Massachusetts; the route for a buyer not registered there is set out under Who May Give One.

Resale Certificates in Massachusetts at a Glance

What Massachusetts calls it	Sales Tax Resale Certificate (Form ST-4)
How you get it	The buyer fills it in
Documents accepted	The state's own form; other routes below
Blank form	Download it from the state
Who may give one	A written statement accepted (buyers located outside Massachusetts that are not required to register)
MTC uniform certificate	Not confirmed
Streamlined Sales Tax certificate	Not confirmed
How long it lasts	Not confirmed
Blanket certificate	Allowed
What protects the seller	Relief from the burden of proof only, see below
Seller keeps it for	Until a stated event, see below
Law	Massachusetts statute and regulation, cited in the sources

Read from the government sources listed at the foot of this page, last checked September 29, 2026. See the sources.

Who May Give a Resale Certificate in Massachusetts

A buyer located outside Massachusetts that is not required to register there may give the seller a signed statement in place of Form ST-4. Form ST-4 may be issued only by a buyer holding a Massachusetts vendor registration. A buyer not engaged in business in Massachusetts may instead give the seller a signed statement in lieu of a Massachusetts resale certificate, declaring that it is not engaged in business in Massachusetts and is buying solely for resale; if it is registered in another state, it attaches a copy of that registration or lists the number and state. This statement route does not apply to drop shipments.

The buyer fills in and signs the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate and gives it to the seller.

Which Documents Are Accepted

Massachusetts requires its own form rather than a document you draw up yourself. That applies to a buyer registered in Massachusetts; the route for a buyer not registered there is set out under Who May Give One.

We have not confirmed whether Massachusetts accepts the Multistate Tax Commission's uniform resale certificate; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.

We have not confirmed whether Massachusetts accepts the Streamlined Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.

What the certificate must contain is set by Massachusetts law, cited in the sources.

How Long It Lasts

We have not confirmed how long the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate stays valid; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.

One blanket certificate may cover repeat purchases from the same seller.

For Sellers Who Accept One

Under Massachusetts's law, a seller that takes a resale certificate in good faith is relieved of the burden of proving the sale was for resale. The certificate only shifts the burden of proving the sale was not a retail sale. It does so only if the seller took it in good faith and produces it within 60 days of the Department's notice to produce it.

The state's general sales tax records period ends on an event rather than after a set number of years. Keep the certificate until the assessment period for the return it relates to has run, generally three years after that return was due or filed, whichever is later, and longer while it stays material.

More for Massachusetts Businesses

Massachusetts's sales tax registration page
Sales tax nexus checker, to see where your sales may require you to register.
Massachusetts LLC guide, for forming and running an LLC in the state.
LLC guide for eBay sellers in Massachusetts, for selling through a marketplace.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Massachusetts calls it the Sales Tax Resale Certificate (Form ST-4). The buyer fills in and signs the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate and gives it to the seller.
: A buyer located outside Massachusetts that is not required to register there may give the seller a signed statement in place of Form ST-4. Form ST-4 may be issued only by a buyer holding a Massachusetts vendor registration. A buyer not engaged in business in Massachusetts may instead give the seller a signed statement in lieu of a Massachusetts resale certificate, declaring that it is not engaged in business in Massachusetts and is buying solely for resale; if it is registered in another state, it attaches a copy of that registration or lists the number and state. This statement route does not apply to drop shipments.
: We have not confirmed whether Massachusetts accepts the Multistate Tax Commission's uniform resale certificate; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. We have not confirmed whether Massachusetts accepts the Streamlined Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
: We have not confirmed how long the Massachusetts Sales Tax Resale Certificate stays valid; check with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. One blanket certificate may cover repeat purchases from the same seller.
: Under Massachusetts's law, a seller that takes a resale certificate in good faith is relieved of the burden of proving the sale was for resale. The certificate only shifts the burden of proving the sale was not a retail sale. It does so only if the seller took it in good faith and produces it within 60 days of the Department's notice to produce it. The state's general sales tax records period ends on an event rather than after a set number of years. Keep the certificate until the assessment period for the return it relates to has run, generally three years after that return was due or filed, whichever is later, and longer while it stays material.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state's tax agency, or the multistate bodies' published notes, say about the certificate a buyer gives a supplier when it buys goods for resale, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you whether your own purchase qualifies: that turns on what you buy, whether you resell it, and where you are registered, and a certificate given for a purchase that does not qualify can leave the buyer owing the tax. Confirm your own position with the tax agency named on this page before you give or accept one.

Sources

Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified Massachusetts sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so. Where we hold the citation but no stable public link, the citation is printed on its own rather than pointed at a guessed address.

malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIX/Chapter64H/Section8M.G.L. c. 64H, s. 8: Presumption of sale at retail; burden of proof; resale and exempt use certificates
mass.gov/regulations/830-CMR-64h81-resale-and-exempt-use-certificates830 CMR 64H.8.1: Resale and Exempt Use Certificates (archived copy)
mass.gov/doc/form-st-4-sales-tax-resale-certificate/downloadForm ST-4 Sales Tax Resale Certificate (Rev. 8/16) (archived copy)
mass.gov/directive/directive-89-10-out-of-state-vendor-property-purchased-for-resale-recordkeeping-requirementsDirective 89-10: Out-of-State Vendor; Property Purchased for Resale; Recordkeeping Requirements (archived copy)
mass.gov/guides/sales-and-use-taxSales and Use Tax (Massachusetts DOR guide) (archived copy)
mass.gov/regulations/830-CMR-62c251-record-retention830 CMR 62C.25.1: Record Retention (archived copy)
Law on resale certificates in Massachusetts: M.G.L. c. 64H, s. 8
Law on resale certificates in Massachusetts: 830 CMR 64H.8.1
What the certificate must contain: M.G.L. c. 64H, s. 8(c); 830 CMR 64H.8.1(4)(c)

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Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC

Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.