Alabama Resale Certificate
Rules, Form & Expiration

Accepted form: No separate form: your Alabama sales tax license is the resale certificate. Agency: Alabama Department of Revenue.

What an Alabama resale certificate has to say, who can sign one, how long it lasts, and how to produce a signed copy for every vendor in minutes.

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Alabama resale certificate rules

Certificate form: No prescribed form; No separate form: your Alabama sales tax license is the resale certificate. Rules set by the Alabama Department of Revenue. Our generator produces a certificate with every element the state requires.
Issued by: ALDOR; The Alabama Department of Revenue issues it to registered businesses. The buyer gives a copy to each supplier.
Registration number: Alabama sales tax account number; It appears on the buyer's Alabama Sales Tax License (Tax Account License).
MTC uniform certificate: Accepted; The Multistate Tax Commission uniform certificate can be used for purchases here.
Streamlined (SST) certificate: Not accepted; Sellers in Alabama should not take the Streamlined Sales Tax exemption certificate as a resale certificate.
Out-of-state buyers: Home-state permit accepted; A reseller registered in another state can generally use that registration number.
Blanket certificates: Allowed; One certificate can cover an ongoing series of purchases from the same vendor.
Expiration: License renewed every year; The certificate is the sales tax license. Alabama sales tax and related tax account licenses must be renewed every year online in MAT between November 1 and December 31 for the next tax year, with no fee. A license that is not renewed may be cancelled and can no longer be used to buy tax-free for resale. ALDOR prescribes no separate expiry for a vendor's copy.

Alabama rules in plain English

Alabama has no state resale certificate form. The Alabama Department of Revenue (ALDOR) says the resale certificate is the buyer's Sales Tax License. To buy for resale tax-free, give your supplier a copy of your license, printed from My Alabama Taxes, or a certificate that shows your Alabama sales tax account number. ALDOR also posts the Multistate Tax Commission's Uniform Sales & Use Tax Certificate, which many suppliers accept. If you use it, enter your Alabama number next to AL, describe what you sell and what you are buying, and have an owner, partner, officer or other authorized person sign and date it. If your business is outside Alabama and has no Alabama location, ALDOR says a supplier should accept your home-state resale certificate for goods drop-shipped to your Alabama customer. Your license must be renewed online every year between November 1 and December 31. If it is not renewed, it can be cancelled and can no longer be used for tax-free purchases. Suppliers can check your number in My Alabama Taxes. If you use your number to buy items you do not resell, ALDOR can collect the tax from you and from anyone who benefited.

Sources: Alabama resale certificate guidance · Verify a buyer's number

More Alabama facts

Alabama treats a drop shipment as two separate sales. The vendor should accept the remote reseller's home-state resale certificate when goods are drop-shipped to an Alabama customer, and the remote reseller is responsible for any Alabama tax on its own sale. Source
Vendors can check whether an Alabama-issued resale or exemption number is valid in My Alabama Taxes under Other Actions, Search, 'Verify account numbers' (the Tax Account Status Check). Source
Form STE-1 (certificate of exemption) is only for buyers entitled to certain tax-free purchases who are not required to hold a sales tax license. ALDOR will not issue an STE-1 to a business that has a sales tax license. Source
A licensed buyer prints its license (the 'resale certificate') from My Alabama Taxes: open the tax account and click 'Print tax account license'. Source
Alabama sales tax, sellers use tax and Simplified Sellers Use Tax licenses are renewed annually online, with no renewal fee; an unrenewed license may be cancelled and cannot be used for tax-free resale purchases. Source

What an Alabama resale certificate must include

The buyer's legal name, business address, and Alabama sales tax account number, or a home-state registration number where allowed.
The seller's name and address.
A description of the property being purchased for resale, or for a blanket certificate a general description such as "All purchases of tangible personal property for resale".
A statement that the items will be resold in the ordinary course of business, signed and dated by the buyer.

Using your Alabama certificate

Confirm the purchase is genuinely for resale. Using a certificate for supplies or equipment you consume is the most common audit finding.
Give the vendor the signed certificate before or at the time of the sale; a certificate produced after the fact is often rejected.
Issue one blanket certificate per vendor and keep a copy for your records.
Expiration: License renewed every year. Reissue the certificate whenever your permit number, name, or address changes.

Unlimited signed Alabama resale certificates

Enter your business once, add each vendor, and download a signed Alabama certificate on a compliant form. One flat yearly price covers every state where you buy inventory.

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Alabama resale certificate FAQ

What form do I use for an Alabama resale certificate?

No separate form: your Alabama sales tax license is the resale certificate. The rules come from the Alabama Department of Revenue. Our generator produces a signed certificate with every required element.

Does Alabama accept the MTC uniform resale certificate?

Yes. Alabama accepts the Multistate Tax Commission's Uniform Sales and Use Tax Certificate, which is convenient when you buy from vendors in several states.

Can an out-of-state business use a resale certificate in Alabama?

Yes, with conditions. Rule 810-6-1-.144.03 extends the tax-free wholesale purchase to retailers outside Alabama that hold the sales tax license required by their home state. ALDOR's drop-ship FAQ says the vendor should accept the home-state resale certificate when a remote reseller buys for resale to an Alabama customer; ALDOR does not issue sales tax licenses to remote businesses with no Alabama location.

Can I give a vendor one blanket resale certificate in Alabama?

Yes. A blanket certificate in Alabama covers every qualifying purchase from that vendor going forward, typically described as "All purchases of tangible personal property for resale".

How long is an Alabama resale certificate valid?

The certificate is the sales tax license. Alabama sales tax and related tax account licenses must be renewed every year online in MAT between November 1 and December 31 for the next tax year, with no fee. A license that is not renewed may be cancelled and can no longer be used to buy tax-free for resale. ALDOR prescribes no separate expiry for a vendor's copy.

What happens if I misuse an Alabama resale certificate?

ALDOR may collect the sales tax on purchases made illegally with a state tax-exempt number from the person who used the number and anyone who benefited from the illegal use. A specific statutory penalty for misusing a sales tax license as a resale certificate was not confirmed; the $2,000-or-double-tax civil penalty in Ala. Code § 40-9-60(c) applies to certificates of exemption, not sales tax licenses.

When can an Alabama seller rely on a resale certificate?

A retailer who relies in good faith on a state sales tax exemption number authorized by ALDOR, with the claim made on a form provided or approved by ALDOR, is not liable for the tax if the number holder misuses it. ALDOR's note on the MTC certificate adds that each retailer is responsible for determining the validity of the purchaser's claim, so vendors should check the number in MAT ('Verify account numbers').

How do I verify an Alabama resale certificate?

Check the buyer's Alabama sales tax account number with the online lookup from the Alabama Department of Revenue, linked under Sources on this page. Keep a record of the check with the certificate.

Nearby states

This page summarizes Alabama resale certificate rules for general information and is not tax advice. Confirm current requirements with the Alabama Department of Revenue or your tax adviser. State rules last checked October 1, 2026.

Alabama Resale Certificate Rules, Form & Expiration