Using the state rate and ignoring local tax
The state rate is 7.00% but the average customer pays 7.00%. Under-collecting leaves you funding the difference out of your own margin.
USD · 7.00% average combined rate · Reviewed September 2026
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Indiana has one of the highest state rates but no local sales taxes, so a single rate applies across the whole state.
Indiana charges sales tax at 7.00% statewide. There are no local add-ons, so one rate applies across the state.
| Statewide rate | 7.00% |
|---|---|
| Average local add-on | 0.00% |
| Highest local add-on tracked | 0.00% |
| Average combined rate | 7.00% |
| Rank by combined rate | 25th highest of 50 states |
Indiana does not allow local sales taxes. The 7.00% state rate applies in every city and county, which removes the address-lookup problem that sellers face in most other states.
Special rates can still apply to particular categories — lodging, prepared food, vehicle rental and similar — so check the category as well as the rate.
Sellers with a physical presence in Indiana — premises, staff, stock or regular on-site work — generally register with the Indiana Department of Revenue before their first taxable sale. Remote sellers register once their sales into the state cross the state's economic nexus threshold.
Filing frequency is set by the state and usually depends on how much tax you collect: larger collectors file monthly, smaller ones quarterly or annually. The Indiana Department of Revenue sets and notifies your frequency — do not assume it stays the same as your volume grows.
We deliberately do not publish thresholds, filing deadlines or penalty amounts on this page. Those numbers change, and the only copy worth relying on is the one on the state's own site, linked below.
Resale, manufacturing, non-profit and government exemptions all exist in Indiana, and each one depends on a valid certificate from the buyer, not on the buyer's word. Collect the certificate before you issue a zero-tax invoice.
Reference the certificate on the invoice rather than silently leaving tax off. A tax line of $0.00 with a note explaining why is far easier to defend in an audit than an invoice with no mention of tax at all.
A contractor billing a Indiana customer for equipment and labour, showing how the tax line sits under the subtotal.
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment supplied and installed | 1 | $1,600.00 | $1,600.00 |
| On-site labour | 8 | $100.00 | $800.00 |
| Subtotal | $2,400.00 | ||
| Indiana sales tax at the 7.00% average combined rate | $168.00 | ||
| Total due — Net 30 | $2,568.00 | ||
The state rate is 7.00% but the average customer pays 7.00%. Under-collecting leaves you funding the difference out of your own margin.
Collecting sales tax before you are registered creates a liability with no account to remit it to, and the customer cannot reclaim it.
Taxability of services varies widely between states and within them. Confirm the treatment of your specific service with the Indiana Department of Revenue rather than copying what a supplier in another state does.
Write both the terms and a calendar date. In a corporate payment run, an ambiguous due date always resolves in the payer's favour.
Exemption and resale certificates are what justify a zero-tax invoice years later. Store them alongside the invoice, not in an inbox.
Your contact commissioned the work; a different inbox pays for it. Ask for the accounts payable address at the start.
The statewide rate is 7.00%. Local jurisdictions add 0.00% on average and up to 0.00% where local taxes are highest, giving an average combined rate of 7.00% — the 25th highest average combined rate in the country. Figures are from the Tax Foundation's midyear 2026 table; always confirm the rate for your customer's exact address with the Indiana Department of Revenue.
Only if you are registered in Indiana and what you sell is taxable there. Registration is triggered by physical presence or by crossing the state's economic nexus threshold for remote sellers. Taxability of services in particular varies, so check the position for your specific work with the Indiana Department of Revenue before adding a tax line.
No. Indiana has no local sales taxes, so the 7.00% state rate applies everywhere in the state.
There is no prescribed commercial invoice template in Indiana. What matters is that the invoice identifies both parties, describes the supply, shows the amount due, shows any sales tax separately, and can be reconciled with your returns and records.
Through the Indiana Department of Revenue, which runs registration, filing and rate lookups for Indiana. Its website is linked in the official sources section on this page.
Yes — the invoice itself is the same document. The question is whether your sales into Indiana create a registration obligation there. Remote sellers can be required to register once they exceed the state's economic nexus threshold, so track your sales by state.
Last reviewed September 2026.
The primary authority for Indiana registration, rates, filing and exemption rules.
Secondary source for the statewide, average local and combined rate figures shown above.
Directory used to locate each state's official tax agency.
Federal guidance on business income, record-keeping and Form W-9.
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