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Ohio Revised Code

Ohio Rev. Code § 5739.03 (2026)

Consumer to pay tax - report of tax - exemption certificates

✓ current as of May 2026
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Effective:
September 30, 2025
Latest Legislation:
House Bill 96 - 136th General Assembly
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(A) Except as provided in section 5739.05 or section 5739.051 of the Revised Code, the tax imposed by or pursuant to section 5739.02, 5739.021, 5739.023, or 5739.026 of the Revised Code shall be paid by the consumer to the vendor, and each vendor shall collect from the consumer, as a trustee for the state of Ohio, the full and exact amount of the tax payable on each taxable sale, in the manner and at the times provided as follows:

(1) If the price is, at or prior to the provision of the service or the delivery of possession of the thing sold to the consumer, paid in currency passed from hand to hand by the consumer or the consumer's agent to the vendor or the vendor's agent, the vendor or the vendor's agent shall collect the tax with and at the same time as the price;

(2) If the price is otherwise paid or to be paid, the vendor or the vendor's agent shall, at or prior to the provision of the service or the delivery of possession of the thing sold to the consumer, charge the tax imposed by or pursuant to section 5739.02, 5739.021, 5739.023, or 5739.026 of the Revised Code to the account of the consumer, which amount shall be collected by the vendor from the consumer in addition to the price. Such sale shall be reported on and the amount of the tax applicable thereto shall be remitted with the return for the period in which the sale is made, and the amount of the tax shall become a legal charge in favor of the vendor and against the consumer.

(B)(1)(a) If any sale is claimed to be exempt under division (E) of section 5739.01 of the Revised Code or under section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, with the exception of divisions (B)(1) to (11), (28), (48), (55), (59), or (62) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, the consumer must provide to the vendor, and the vendor must obtain from the consumer, a certificate specifying the reason that the sale is not legally subject to the tax. The certificate shall be in such form, and shall be provided either in a hard copy form or electronic form, as the tax commissioner prescribes.

(b) A vendor that obtains a fully completed exemption certificate from a consumer is relieved of liability for collecting and remitting tax on any sale covered by that certificate. If it is determined the exemption was improperly claimed, the consumer shall be liable for any tax due on that sale under section 5739.02, 5739.021, 5739.023, or 5739.026 or Chapter 5741. of the Revised Code. Relief under this division from liability does not apply to any of the following:

(i) A vendor that fraudulently fails to collect tax;

(ii) A vendor that solicits consumers to participate in the unlawful claim of an exemption;

(iii) A vendor that accepts an exemption certificate from a consumer that claims an exemption based on who purchases or who sells property or a service, when the subject of the transaction sought to be covered by the exemption certificate is actually received by the consumer at a location operated by the vendor in this state, and this state has posted to its web site an exemption certificate form that clearly and affirmatively indicates that the claimed exemption is not available in this state;

(iv) A vendor that accepts an exemption certificate from a consumer who claims a multiple points of use exemption under division (D) of section 5739.033 of the Revised Code, if the item purchased is tangible personal property, other than prewritten computer software.

(2) The vendor shall maintain records, including exemption certificates, of all sales on which a consumer has claimed an exemption, and provide them to the tax commissioner on request.

(3) The tax commissioner may establish an identification system whereby the commissioner issues an identification number to a consumer that is exempt from payment of the tax. The consumer must present the number to the vendor, if any sale is claimed to be exempt as provided in this section.

(4) If no certificate is provided or obtained within ninety days after the date on which such sale is consummated, it shall be presumed that the tax applies. Failure to have so provided or obtained a certificate shall not preclude a vendor, within one hundred twenty days after the tax commissioner gives written notice of intent to levy an assessment, from either establishing that the sale is not subject to the tax, or obtaining, in good faith, a fully completed exemption certificate.

(5) Certificates need not be obtained nor provided where the identity of the consumer is such that the transaction is never subject to the tax imposed or where the item of tangible personal property sold or the service provided is never subject to the tax imposed, regardless of use, or when the sale is in interstate commerce.

(6) If a transaction is claimed to be exempt under division (B)(13) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, the contractor shall obtain certification of the claimed exemption from the contractee. This certification shall be in addition to an exemption certificate provided by the contractor to the vendor. A contractee that provides a certification under this division shall be deemed to be the consumer of all items purchased by the contractor under the claim of exemption, if it is subsequently determined that the exemption is not properly claimed. The certification shall be in such form as the tax commissioner prescribes.

(7) If a transaction is claimed to be exempt under division (B)(13) of section 5739.02 of the Revised Code, the person that leases a sports facility, as defined in section 307.696 of the Revised Code, wholly owned by a county may provide and sign, on behalf of the county, an exemption certificate required under this section for that exemption.

(C) As used in this division, "contractee" means a person who seeks to enter or enters into a contract or agreement with a contractor or vendor for the construction of real property or for the sale and installation onto real property of tangible personal property.

Any contractor or vendor may request from any contractee a certification of what portion of the property to be transferred under such contract or agreement is to be incorporated into the realty and what portion will retain its status as tangible personal property after installation is completed. The contractor or vendor shall request the certification by certified mail delivered to the contractee, return receipt requested. Upon receipt of such request and prior to entering into the contract or agreement, the contractee shall provide to the contractor or vendor a certification sufficiently detailed to enable the contractor or vendor to ascertain the resulting classification of all materials purchased or fabricated by the contractor or vendor and transferred to the contractee. This requirement applies to a contractee regardless of whether the contractee holds a direct payment permit under section 5739.031 of the Revised Code or provides to the contractor or vendor an exemption certificate as provided under this section.

For the purposes of the taxes levied by this chapter and Chapter 5741. of the Revised Code, the contractor or vendor may in good faith rely on the contractee's certification. Notwithstanding division (B) of section 5739.01 of the Revised Code, if the tax commissioner determines that certain property certified by the contractee as tangible personal property pursuant to this division is, in fact, real property, the contractee shall be considered to be the consumer of all materials so incorporated into that real property and shall be liable for the applicable tax, and the contractor or vendor shall be excused from any liability on those materials.

If a contractee fails to provide such certification upon the request of the contractor or vendor, the contractor or vendor shall comply with the provisions of this chapter and Chapter 5741. of the Revised Code without the certification. If the tax commissioner determines that such compliance has been performed in good faith and that certain property treated as tangible personal property by the contractor or vendor is, in fact, real property, the contractee shall be considered to be the consumer of all materials so incorporated into that real property and shall be liable for the applicable tax, and the construction contractor or vendor shall be excused from any liability on those materials.

This division does not apply to any contract or agreement where the tax commissioner determines as a fact that a certification under this division was made solely on the decision or advice of the contractor or vendor.

(D) Notwithstanding division (B) of section 5739.01 of the Revised Code, whenever the total rate of tax imposed under this chapter is increased after the date after a construction contract is entered into, the contractee shall reimburse the construction contractor for any additional tax paid on tangible property consumed or services received pursuant to the contract.

(E) A vendor who files a petition for reassessment contesting the assessment of tax on sales for which the vendor obtained no valid exemption certificates and for which the vendor failed to establish that the sales were properly not subject to the tax during the one-hundred-twenty-day period allowed under division (B) of this section, may present to the tax commissioner additional evidence to prove that the sales were properly subject to a claim of exception or exemption. The vendor shall file such evidence within ninety days of the receipt by the vendor of the notice of assessment, except that, upon application and for reasonable cause, the period for submitting such evidence shall be extended thirty days.

The commissioner shall consider such additional evidence in reaching the final determination on the assessment and petition for reassessment.

(F) Whenever a vendor refunds the price, minus any separately stated delivery charge, of an item of tangible personal property on which the tax imposed under this chapter has been paid, the vendor shall also refund the amount of tax paid, minus the amount of tax attributable to the delivery charge.

Last updated July 31, 2025 at 11:57 AM

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 60 cases, 1953–2020 · leading case: Maxxim Med., Inc. v. Tracy, 1999 Ohio 136 (Ohio 1999).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Maxxim Med., Inc. v. Tracy, 1999 Ohio 136 (Ohio 1999). · cites it 16× “” R.C. 5739.03 provides that the tax “shall be paid by the consumer to the vendor, and each vendor shall collect from the consumer, as trustee for the state of Ohio.”
Volbers-Klarich v. Middletown Mgmt., Inc., 2010 Ohio 2057 (Ohio 2010). · cites it 2× “02(E)) in holding: “[T]he sales tax wrongfully collected by appellant as trustee for the state pursuant to R.C. 5739.03 is a tax collection for the benefit of the state of Ohio.”
Basic Distrib. Corp. v. Ohio Dep't of Taxation, 762 N.E.2d 979 (Ohio 2002). · cites it 4× “031(F) provides that-if a buyer notifies a seller of the buyer’s direct payment permit number and that the tax is being paid directly to the state, the seller is absolved of all duties and liabilities imposed by R.”
Athens v. McClain (Slip Opinion), 2020 Ohio 5146 (Ohio 2020). · cites it 2× “)”), but also from the way the term is used in tax legislation, see R.C. 5739.03(B)(4) (authorizing the tax commissioner to issue a “notice of intent to levy an assessment” against a vendor).”
Chrysler Fin. Co. v. Wilkins, 812 N.E.2d 948 (Ohio 2004). · cites it 2× “R.C. 5739.03(B) provides that where the price is to be paid other than at or before the time of delivery of possession, the vendor shall charge the tax “to the account of the consumer, which amount shall be collected by the vendor from the consumer in addition to the price.”
Craftsman Type, Inc. v. Lindley, 451 N.E.2d 768 (Ohio 1983). · cites it 4× “First, appellant, in contravention of R.C. 5739.03(B), 2 did not timely secure the required certificates from its customers to support its claimed exemptions.”
Cincinnati Reds, L.L.C. v. Testa (Slip Opinion), 2018 Ohio 4669 (Ohio 2018). · cites it 2× “01(F) (a “consumer” is “any person who has purchased tangible personal property”); see also R.C. 5739.03(A); R.C. 5741.02(B) (“Each consumer * * * shall be liable for the tax”).”
Litton Sys., Inc. v. Tracy, 728 N.E.2d 389 (Ohio 2000). · cites it 3× “01(B)(5), the consumer in a construction contract is the construction contractor, because a construction contract is not a sale of tangible personal property to the owner of the real property. The contractor must pay the tax on his purchase of the materials.”
EPI of Cleveland, Inc. v. Limbach, 537 N.E.2d 651 (Ohio 1989). · cites it 9× “R.C. 5739.03 provides, in pertinent part, the following: “If any sale is claimed to be exempt under division (E) of section 5739.”
Wendy's Food Sys., Inc. v. State Dep't of Taxation (In Re Wendy's Food Sys., Inc.), 133 B.R. 917 (Bankr. S.D. Ohio 1991). · cites it 4× “” Ohio Rev.Code § 5739.03. WFS does not seriously dispute that it collected the sales taxes in trust for Ohio.”
Russo v. Donahue, 226 N.E.2d 747 (Ohio 1967). · cites it 4× “By the provision of Section 5546-3, General Code (Section 5739.03, Revised Code), that “* * * the tax hereby imposed *205 shall be paid by the consumer to the vendor * * the General Assembly clearly indicated that the bracket tax was a tax on the consumer.”
Bay Mech. & Elec. Corp. v. Testa, 2012 Ohio 4312 (Ohio 2012). · cites it 2× “Although the sales-tax law usually requires vendors to charge the tax to their consumers and then remit the collected tax to the state, see R.C. 5739.03 and 5739.29, another section—R.”
Show all 60 citing cases →
— Ohio Rev. Code § 5739.03(A) — 2 cases
Volbers-Klarich v. Middletown Mgmt., Inc., 2010 Ohio 2057 (Ohio 2010). “02(E)) in holding: “[T]he sales tax wrongfully collected by appellant as trustee for the state pursuant to R.C. 5739.03 is a tax collection for the benefit of the state of Ohio.”
Cincinnati Reds, L.L.C. v. Testa (Slip Opinion), 2018 Ohio 4669 (Ohio 2018). “01(F) (a “consumer” is “any person who has purchased tangible personal property”); see also R.C. 5739.03(A); R.C. 5741.02(B) (“Each consumer * * * shall be liable for the tax”).”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 5739.03(B) — 12 cases
Maxxim Med., Inc. v. Tracy, 1999 Ohio 136 (Ohio 1999). “” R.C. 5739.03 provides that the tax “shall be paid by the consumer to the vendor, and each vendor shall collect from the consumer, as trustee for the state of Ohio.”
Chrysler Fin. Co. v. Wilkins, 812 N.E.2d 948 (Ohio 2004). “R.C. 5739.03(B) provides that where the price is to be paid other than at or before the time of delivery of possession, the vendor shall charge the tax “to the account of the consumer, which amount shall be collected by the vendor from the consumer in addition to the price.”
Craftsman Type, Inc. v. Lindley, 451 N.E.2d 768 (Ohio 1983). “First, appellant, in contravention of R.C. 5739.03(B), 2 did not timely secure the required certificates from its customers to support its claimed exemptions.”
Basic Distrib. Corp. v. Ohio Dep't of Taxation, 762 N.E.2d 979 (Ohio 2002). “031(F) provides that-if a buyer notifies a seller of the buyer’s direct payment permit number and that the tax is being paid directly to the state, the seller is absolved of all duties and liabilities imposed by R.”
Maxxim Med., Inc. v. Tracy, 1999 Ohio 136 (Ohio 1999).
— Ohio Rev. Code § 5739.03(B)(4) — 1 case
Athens v. McClain (Slip Opinion), 2020 Ohio 5146 (Ohio 2020). “)”), but also from the way the term is used in tax legislation, see R.C. 5739.03(B)(4) (authorizing the tax commissioner to issue a “notice of intent to levy an assessment” against a vendor).”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 5739.03(E) — 2 cases
Basic Distrib. Corp. v. Ohio Dep't of Taxation, 762 N.E.2d 979 (Ohio 2002). “031(F) provides that-if a buyer notifies a seller of the buyer’s direct payment permit number and that the tax is being paid directly to the state, the seller is absolved of all duties and liabilities imposed by R.”
Basic Distrib. Corp. v. Ohio Dept. of Taxation, 2002 Ohio 794 (Ohio 2002).
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