Virginia’s state sales tax rate is effectively 5.3%. But localities and regions can stack additional taxes on top of that. Williamsburg, James City County, and York County have the highest sales tax rates in the state at 7.0%.

Below, we’ll discuss how Virginia’s layered sales tax works, the combined sales tax rates for some of the state’s major cities and counties, and what businesses that sell into Virginia need to know about their tax collection obligations.

Highlights

• Virginia’s sales tax rate varies by region. It ranges from 5.3%–7.0%.

• Businesses that sell goods to Virginia customers must apply the correct sales tax rate.

• Remote sellers that exceed the economic threshold in annual gross retail sales or transaction volume to Virginia customers are liable for sales tax.

What is the Virginia sales tax rate?

Virginia’s state sales tax rate is technically 4.3%. Localities in the state add a mandatory 1.0% tax on top, which brings the minimum to 5.3% across the board.

Sales tax applies to:

• Tangible personal property sales, leases, and rentals

• Accommodations

• Certain taxable services (unless it’s specified as exempt)

Additional sales tax applies to specific regions. Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, and Central Virginia each add 0.7% to fund regional infrastructure, which pushes the sales tax in those areas to 6.0%. Williamsburg, James City County, and York County impose another 1.0%. So the combined sales tax for the Historic Triangle area is 7.0%.

What is the local sales tax range in Virginia?

Virginia’s average combined sales tax is 5.77%, but the rate varies depending on where the transaction takes place. Virginia has varying regional sales taxes that can affect the total sales tax in effect.

What are Virginia’s sales tax rates by city?

Sales tax rates across some of Virginia’s major cities are as follows.

You can use Stripe’s sales tax calculator to find the exact rate for any specific address.

What are Virginia’s sales tax rates by county?

Here are the combined sales tax rates for some of Virginia’s largest counties.

How do you manage Virginia’s sales tax rate as a business?

If your business has physical or economic nexus in Virginia, you must collect sales tax. A store, warehouse, inventory, or any employees in Virginia creates physical nexus, regardless of revenue volume. Economic nexus is created if your business exceeds $100,000 in annual gross retail sales or 200 transactions with Virginia customers in the previous or current calendar year.

Stripe Tax handles rate calculation automatically: it applies the correct combined rate for each customer’s address, accounts for regional surcharges, and generates the records you need at filing time.

Here are a few more details about Virginia sales tax that sometimes cause issues for businesses:

• Marketplace sales count towards your threshold: If you sell through both your own website and a marketplace, your marketplace facilitator is responsible for tax on sales through the marketplace. But you’re still responsible for the tax on your direct sales.

• Exempt sales require documentation: Prescription drugs and sales to qualifying organizations aren’t subject to sales tax, but you need valid exemption certificates on file. Groceries aren’t exempt but are subject to a reduced 1.0% sales tax rate.

• The August sales tax holiday affects certain categories: Virginia suspends state sales tax each year in early August on qualifying school supplies, clothing, footwear, and emergency preparedness items.

• Sales tax filing is handled through Form ST-1: Returns and payments are due by the 20th of the month following each reporting period.

• Late filing penalties compound quickly: There’s a 6.0% monthly penalty on unpaid sales tax, capped at 30.0%, with a $10 minimum even when no tax is owed. Late payments accrue interest at the federal underpayment rate plus 2.0%.

How Stripe Tax can help

Stripe Tax reduces the complexity of tax compliance so you can focus on growing your business. Stripe Tax helps you monitor your obligations and alerts you when you exceed a sales tax registration threshold based on your Stripe transactions. In addition, it automatically calculates and collects sales tax, value-added tax (VAT), and goods and services tax (GST) on both physical and digital goods and services—in all US states and in more than 100 countries.

Start collecting taxes globally by adding a single line of code to your existing integration, clicking a button in the Dashboard, or using our powerful application programming interface (API).

Stripe Tax can help you:

• Understand where to register and collect taxes: See where you need to collect taxes based on your Stripe transactions. After you register, switch on tax collection in a new state or country in seconds. You can start collecting taxes by adding one line of code to your existing Stripe integration or add tax collection with the click of a button in the Stripe Dashboard.

• Register to pay tax: Let Stripe manage your global tax registrations and benefit from a simplified process that prefills application details—saving you time and simplifying compliance with local regulations.

• Automatically collect tax: Stripe Tax calculates and collects the right amount of tax owed, no matter what or where you sell. It supports hundreds of products and services and is up-to-date on tax rules and rate changes.

• Simplify filing: Stripe Tax seamlessly integrates with filing partners, so your global filings are accurate and timely. Let our partners manage your filings so you can focus on growing your business.

Learn more about Stripe Tax, or get started today.