How do I cancel my Avalara contract?

What you’ll need: Your Avalara contract or order form · Your renewal date · 20–30 minutes

Canceling Avalara requires written notice delivered within a specific window before your renewal date. Miss that window, and your contract auto-renews for another term. The process itself isn’t difficult: the most common mistake is starting it too late.

Step 1: Find your renewal date and notice requirement

Pull your original Avalara contract or order form. Look for two things:

Your renewal date: the date your current term ends and automatically renews
The cancellation notice period: the number of days before renewal by which you must submit written notice to cancel

Avalara’s standard terms require 30–60 days written notice before renewal to cancel without penalty. Some contracts require 90 days. If you miss this window, you’re bound to the next term.

If you don’t have your contract, log into your Avalara account and check the billing or subscription section, or email your account manager and ask for a copy of your current order form.

Step 2: Calculate whether you’re inside the notice window

Subtract your notice requirement from your renewal date. That’s your deadline to cancel.

Example: Renewal date is September 1. Your contract requires 60 days notice. You must submit cancellation by July 2 to avoid auto-renewing for another year.

If your deadline has already passed and you’ve auto-renewed, you still have options, but they involve negotiating an early termination, which typically triggers an early termination fee. Early termination fees in Avalara contracts are usually calculated as the remaining months in the term at the contracted monthly rate.

Step 3: Send written cancellation notice

Avalara requires written notice: a verbal conversation with your account manager is not sufficient. Your options:

Email your account manager with an explicit statement that you are canceling, the effective date, and your account name and number. Keep the reply as your confirmation.
Submit through Avalara’s support portal if your contract specifies that channel.

Your notice should include:

Account name and account number
A clear statement that you are canceling effective [date]
A request for written confirmation of receipt

Do not consider cancellation confirmed until you receive written acknowledgment. Follow up if you don’t get one within 5 business days.

Step 4: Export your data before access ends

Once cancellation is confirmed, request or download the following before your access terminates:

Filing history: all returns filed by Avalara on your behalf, by state and period (minimum last 3 years; last 4–5 years if you’ve been a customer that long)
Registered states list: every state where Avalara has a registration on file for you, with the registration number and effective date
Exemption certificates: all customer exemption certificates stored in Avalara’s CertCapture or equivalent
Transaction data: exported transaction history for your records

This data belongs to you. Avalara’s standard terms allow you to export it, but access ends when your term ends. Don’t wait.

Related: What data and records do I need to export from Avalara before leaving?

Step 5: Handle your SST state registrations separately

If you’re registered in SST member states through Avalara, those registrations are held with the SST Governing Board, not with Avalara directly. They don’t automatically transfer when you cancel your Avalara account.

You need to formally transfer your SST registrations to your new provider through the CSP Transfer process before or alongside your Avalara cancellation. Do not cancel Avalara before this transfer is confirmed. If you do, your SST state registrations may go inactive, creating a compliance gap.

Related: How do I transfer my SST registration from one CSP to another?

Step 6: Set your new provider’s start date before Avalara goes dark

Confirm with your new provider the exact date they will begin handling filings. This date should precede or align with the date Avalara’s service ends, not come after it.

Get written confirmation from your new provider of which filing period they are responsible for first. This is your audit evidence that coverage was continuous.

Related: Will there be a compliance gap when switching providers mid-year?

Common pitfalls

Missing the notice window: the most frequent issue. Set a calendar reminder 90 days before your renewal date so you’re never caught off guard.
Assuming a phone call is sufficient: it isn’t. Get everything in writing.
Canceling before the SST transfer is complete: this creates a real compliance gap in 24 states. Complete the transfer first.
Not downloading your data before access ends: Avalara will not maintain access past your contract end date for data retrieval.