Sales tax in Washington DC — rates, nexus, and filing

DC functions as a single jurisdiction, no local complexity. The notable points for ecommerce sellers are the 6% general rate, active digital goods taxation, and elevated rates on food and beverages.

Key facts

Taxability highlights

Digital goods and SaaS: DC taxes digital goods and streaming services. Downloaded software, digital content, and SaaS are generally taxable.

Streaming services: DC has specifically taxed streaming services, including video and music streaming subscriptions, as part of its digital goods taxation.

Clothing: Taxable — DC has no clothing exemption.

Food and groceries: Unprepared food for home consumption is generally exempt from the 6% rate. Prepared food and restaurant meals are taxed at 10%.

Shipping: DC taxes delivery charges when the underlying goods are taxable.

Non-SST status

DC is not an SST member. Sellers filing through a CSP don’t receive SST audit protection for DC transactions. DC manages its own registration and administration through the Office of Tax and Revenue.

Single jurisdiction

DC has no municipalities or counties: the entire district is a single taxing jurisdiction with a single rate for each product category. This makes DC operationally simpler than many states with extensive local variation.

Marketplace facilitators

DC requires marketplace facilitators to collect and remit sales tax on third-party sales. Sellers on Amazon, Etsy, and similar platforms don’t separately collect DC tax on marketplace-facilitated orders.