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FORM BR-400 Instructions

Application for Business Tax Account

Line-by-Line Instructions

PART 1 APPLICANT INFORMATION
Line 1 Business Type Check the box for the type of business ownership.
Sole Proprietor is a business owned by an individual, a married couple, or civil union members.
Married couples or civil union members must make a federal election to be treated as sole
proprietors; the default status is a partnership.
LLC orLimited Liability Company is a business organization form containing the elements of both
a corporation and a partnership. This category includes Single Member LLCs as well as
L3C (Low-Profit Limited Liability Company).
Single Member LLC is a Limited Liability Company which has one member and files taxes as a
INSTR (Place at FIRST page)
sole proprietorship, using federal Form 1040, Schedule C, Profit or Loss from Business. Instr. pages
Partnership includes all partnership forms. There is no separate category for general or limited
partnerships.
S-Corporation is a business corporation taxed under Subchapter S of the Internal Revenue Code.
C-Corporation is a standard business corporation taxed under Subchapter C of the Internal Revenue 7 - 12
Code.
Federal Government includes agencies, municipalities, and public corporations from states,
territories, or provinces other than Vermont.
Vermont State Government includes Vermont state agencies, municipalities, school districts, and
public corporations.
501(c)(3) organizations are designated as tax-exempt under the Internal Revenue Code. You must
include a copy of your designation from the IRS. If you have not received the designation
yet, include a copy of the organization’s articles of association and bylaws.
Line 3 Federal Employee Identification Number (FEIN) Employers, regardless of ownership type,
must have a federal employer identification number. Apply for an FEIN at www.irs.gov.
Line 4 Social Security Number This applies to a sole proprietorship only. For married couples or civil
union member owners, use Schedule BR-400A, Business Principals with Fiscal Responsibility, to
provide the other individual’s name and Social Security Number.
Line 6 NAICS The North American Industry Classification System is the standard used by federal statistics
agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing
statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. Visit www.census.gov/eos/www/naics to find
your NAICS code.
Line 14 Date authorized to do business in Vermont This is the date you were authorized to begin business
by the Vermont Secretary of State’s office.

Form BR-400 Instructions
Page 1 of 3
Rev. 10/20

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                         PART 2    APPLICANT QUESTIONS
Question 1 Examples of purchases subject to the Vermont Sales and Use Tax include, but are not limited 
           to  items sold at retail other than for resale; computers, printers, monitors, and other computer 
           peripherals and supplies; prewritten computer software; streaming and digital downloads of movies 
           and music; cameras and photographic equipment and supplies; sporting goods; audio and audio-visual 
           equipment; books, music, and magazine subscriptions; airplanes; boats; tractors; and snowmobiles.
           Examples of items that are not subject to the Vermont Sales and Use Tax are food, clothing, 
           prescription drugs, medical supplies, and most services.
           Business Use Tax is due when a business purchases taxable goods or services, including the purchase 
           or lease of assets, consumable goods, and promotional items, for use in Vermont without paying 
           the required Vermont Sales Tax.
Question 2 A prepared meal is anything ready to eat on or off premises and includes almost all heated food 
           and beverages.
           A hotel is an establishment that holds itself out to the public by offering sleeping accommodations 
           for a consideration and includes homes that are rented for 15 or more days per year.
Question 3 All businesses who pay wages to employees who work in Vermont (whether or not they live in 
           Vermont) which are subject to federal withholding are required to withhold and remit Vermont 
           income tax.
Question 5 Is your business a wholesale dealer of cigarettes and/or roll-your-own tobacco?
           A wholesale dealer is a person who imports or causes to be imported into the state any cigarettes, 
           little cigars, roll-your-own tobacco, snuff, new smokeless tobacco, or other tobacco product for 
           sale or who sells or furnishes any of these products to other wholesale dealers or retail dealers for 
           the purpose of resale, but not directly to consumers.
           Roll-Your-Own Tobacco is any tobacco which, because of its appearance, type, packaging, or 
           labeling, is suitable for use and likely to be offered to, or purchased by, consumers as tobacco for 
           making cigarettes.
           Please contact the Vermont Department of Liquor Control at (802) 828-2345 for information 
           pertaining to the licensing requirements for retail tobacco sellers.
Question 6 Is your business a wholesale dealer of tobacco products other than cigarettes?
           A wholesale dealer is a person who imports or causes to be imported into the state any cigarettes, 
           little cigars, roll-your-own tobacco, snuff, new smokeless tobacco, or other tobacco product for 
           sale or who sells or furnishes any of these products to other wholesale dealers or retail dealers for 
           the purpose of resale, but not directly to consumers.
           Other tobacco products include any product manufactured from, derived from, or containing 
           tobacco that is intended for human consumption by smoking, chewing, or in any other manner, 
           including products sold as a tobacco substitute and including any liquids, whether nicotine based 
           or not, or delivery devices sold separately for use with a tobacco substitute.
           Please contact the Vermont Department of Liquor Control at (802) 828-2345 for information 
           pertaining to the licensing requirements for retail tobacco sellers.
Question 9 Will your business be making retail sales of aviation jet fuel in the State of Vermont?
           Retail sales of aviation jet fuel are subject to Vermont Sales and Use Tax.  Businesses which sell 
           aviation jet fuel at retail must register for a Vermont business account.
                                                                                         Form BR-400 Instructions
                                                                                                  Page 2 of 3
                                                                                                  Rev. 10/20

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Question 12 Will your business deliver any of the following fuels to customers?
Vermont imposes a Fuel Gross Receipt Tax of 0.5% on the retail sales of the following fuels: heating
oil, kerosene, and other dyed diesel fuels delivered to a business or residence; propane gas; natural
gas; electricity; and coal.
All deliveries of heating oil, kerosene, and other dyed diesel fuels to customers’ residential or
business locations are subject to the fuel gross receipts tax. Fuels sold to the customer at a fuel
dealer pump are not subject to the tax.

PART 3 PREVIOUS OWNERSHIP
32 V.S.A. § 3260 “Bulk sales” is the Vermont Statute which defines your legal obligations when buying or
selling businesses. See legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/section/32/103/03260 for more information.
NOTE: Buying existing business assets requires notification to the Vermont
Department of Taxes 10 days prior to the purchase. If notice is not given, you may
become liable for the previous owner’s outstanding business tax liability.

PART 4 COMPLIANCE CHECK
Check the appropriate “Yes” or “No” boxes to indicate whether any business principal has been involved with a
compliance action by the Vermont Department of Taxes. If “Yes” is checked, please include an explanation
with the application.

PART 5 CERTIFICATION
The owner or business officer responsible for collection and remitting taxes is required to certify that the information
provided in this application is true, correct, and complete.
NOTE: It is the responsibility of the taxpayer to periodically check for updates
and changes to Vermont taxes. Sign up to receive email updates by visiting
tax.vermont.gov/tax-forms-and-publications/news/subscribe

Form BR-400 Instructions
Page 3 of 3
Rev. 10/20

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Schedule BR-400A BUSINESS PRINCIPALS WITH FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
You must include the title, Social Security Number, name, and address of all individuals who are responsible for
the fiscal aspects of your business. These may be partners, shareholders, and/or officers such as the president,
treasurer, comptroller, etc.

Schedule BR-400B ACCOUNT APPLICATION

MEALS AND ROOMS TAX
Any private person, entity, institution, or organization selling meals, serving alcohol, or renting
rooms to the public must collect the Vermont Meals and Rooms Tax from their customers on their
gross receipts and remit the tax. The rates for meals and rooms tax in Vermont are the following:
• 9.0% on sales of prepared food and restaurant meals
• 9.0% on sales of lodging and meeting rooms in hotels, motels, inns, etc.
• 10.0% on sales of alcoholic beverages served in restaurants
• 1.0% Local Option Tax on Meals, Rooms, and Alcohol may apply to select towns.
Go to http://tax.vermont.gov/business-and-corp/sales-and-use-tax/local-
option-tax for more information.
The Vermont Meals and Rooms Tax regulations are available on our website at
http://tax.vermont.gov/research-and-reports/legal-library/regulations.
Line 1 Start Date (or Expected Start Date)
This is the date your business began (or expects to begin) making sales of items subject to Vermont
Meals and Rooms Tax. It may not necessarily be the date the business began. For out-of-state
business, use the start date of your Vermont activity.
Line 3 Business Operation
Year-Round - This business is open all year.
Occasional - The business makes sales in Vermont and does not have a permanent physical location.
Example: out-of-state vendors selling prepared food at a fair in Vermont.
Seasonal - The business is only open during certain months of the year. Please indicate the months
of operation.
NOTE: All taxpayers who have multiple locations for which meals and rooms tax is paid, or whose
total meals and rooms tax remittance for the year will exceed $100,000.00, are mandated
by the Commissioner of Taxes to file their meals and room tax returns electronically using
www.myvtax.vermont.gov.
Multiple Locations
If you have more than one business location in Vermont, you are required to have a license for each
location. You must complete a separate Schedule BR-400B for each of the different accounts.

Schedules BR-400A and BR-400B Instructions
Page 1 of 3
Rev. 10/20

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SALES AND USE TAX
A sales tax of 6.0% is imposed on retail sales of tangible personal property unless exempted by
law. Retail sales include goods that you sell at your place of business as well as other locations in
Vermont. A seller must collect sales tax at the time and place of the sale. Sales tax is destination-
based, meaning the tax is applied based on the location where the buyer takes possession of the
item or where it is delivered.
Use tax is paid by the purchaser of an item when the purchase is made from a vendor that is not
registered by the state of Vermont to collect sales tax. Sales tax and use tax work together to create
the same tax result whether a vendor collects sales tax or not. Therefore, use tax has the same rate,
rules, and exemptions as sales tax.
Businesses are responsible for collecting sales tax from their customers and then filing and remitting
the tax to the state. Sales tax is reported using the accrual basis, requiring that sales tax is charged
at the time of the sale and remitted even if full payment for the sale has not been received by the
seller.
A 1.0% Local Option Tax on Sales and Use may apply to select towns.
Go to http://tax.vermont.gov/business-and-corp/sales-and-use-tax/local-option-tax for more
information.
The Vermont Sales and Use Tax regulations are available on our website at:
http://tax.vermont.gov/research-and-reports/legal-library/regulations
Line 1 Start Date (or Expected Start Date)
This is the date your business began (or expects to begin) making sales of items subject to Vermont
Sales and Use Tax. It may not necessarily be the date the business began. For out-of-state businesses,
use the start date of your Vermont activity
Line 3 Business Operation
Year-Round - This business is open all year.
Occasional - The business makes sales in Vermont and does not have a permanent physical location.
Example: out-of-state vendors selling at a craft fair in Vermont.
Seasonal - The business is only open during certain months of the year. Please indicate the months
of operation.
NOTE: All taxpayers who have multiple locations for which sales and use tax is paid, or whose
total sales and use tax remittance for the year will exceed $100,000.00, are mandated
by the Commissioner of Taxes to file their sales and use tax returns electronically using
www.myvtax.vermont.gov.
Multiple Locations
If you have more than one business location in Vermont, you are required to have a license for each
location. You must complete a separate Schedule BR-400B for each of the different accounts.

Schedules BR-400A and BR-400B Instructions
Page 2 of 3
Rev. 10/20

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WITHHOLDING TAX
Wages, pensions, annuities, and other payments are generally subject to Vermont Income Tax
withholding if the payments are subject to federal tax withholding and the payments are made to:
1. A Vermont resident or
2. A nonresident of Vermont for services performed in Vermont.
Line 4 Start Date (or Expected Start Date)
This is the date your business began (or expects to begin) paying wages subject to Vermont
Withholding Tax. It may not necessarily be the date the business began. For out-of-state business,
use the start date of your Vermont activity.
Line 6 Business Operation
Year-Round - This business is open all year.
NOTE: All semi-weekly filers are mandated by the Commissioner of Taxes to file their withholding
tax returns electronically. Any taxpayer may file and pay their withholding tax electronically
using www.myvtax.vermont.gov.

Line 7 Name of Payroll/Filing Service used INSTR (Place at LAST page)
Instr. pages
If you have a payroll filing service, enter the name of the service.
Multiple Locations
An employer may report withholding for all Vermont locations on one account. However, an
employer may elect to have a Business Tax Account for each location. An employer may also elect
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to have a separate withholding account for W-2 wages and 1099 income tax withholding. You must
complete a separate Schedule BR-400B for each of the different accounts.

Schedules BR-400A and BR-400B Instructions
Page 3 of 3
Rev. 10/20

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