Key figures
Delaware receivables
2026, with sources
No sales tax, a gross receipts tax instead
Delaware is one of the few states with no sales tax. Nothing is added to invoices, there is no SaaS taxability question, and there is no economic nexus threshold to track for Delaware.
What Delaware has instead is a gross receipts tax on businesses licensed in the state. It is levied on the seller’s gross receipts, at a rate that depends on the business activity: 0.3983% for general services, after excluding the first $100,000 a month ($300,000 a quarter). Receipts can’t be reduced for costs, and a company gets one exclusion per activity, not per location.
When it reaches a startup
The license and the gross receipts tax follow Delaware operations. A company with an office or staff in Delaware takes out a business license, generally $75 a year, and files gross receipts returns: quarterly through its first calendar year, then monthly or quarterly depending on the Division of Revenue’s lookback. Monthly returns are due on the 20th of the following month; quarterly ones on the last day of the month after the quarter.
Because the tax is on the seller, it is an operating expense, not a liability collected from customers. Revenue under ASC 606 is unaffected.
Two examples
A Pennsylvania SaaS company with 40 Delaware customers and no presence in Delaware has nothing to do for Delaware on the receivables side: no registration, no tax on invoices, no return. Its only Delaware exposure is through its Delaware incorporation, which is a compliance matter.
A consulting firm that opens an office in Wilmington and receives $150,000 for services rendered in Delaware in a month excludes the first $100,000 and owes 0.3983% on the remaining $50,000: $199, rounded to the nearest dollar as Delaware requires. It is booked as an operating expense, not netted against revenue.
Customer credits and overpayments that go unclaimed are reportable as unclaimed property. For a Delaware corporation, any of them without a known customer address are reported to Delaware, which is one reason to keep billing addresses clean in the billing system.
The federal baseline
This page covers what Delaware adds. The federal rules underneath it apply here too.
Common questions
Do we collect sales tax from Delaware customers?
No. Delaware has no sales tax, so there is no economic nexus threshold, no exemption certificates and nothing to collect from Delaware customers.
Does the gross receipts tax apply to our SaaS revenue?
Only if the company is doing business in Delaware and needs a Delaware business license. The gross receipts tax is a license fee on the seller’s receipts from goods sold and services rendered in Delaware, at a rate set by business activity, above a $100,000 monthly exclusion. It isn’t charged to the customer, and a company with no Delaware operations usually isn’t licensed there.
Receivables next door
- MDMaryland receivablesSince July 2025 Maryland taxes SaaS: 3% when sold for use in a business’s systems, 6% for individual use. Remote sellers register at $100,000 or 200 transactions.
- NJNew Jersey receivablesNew Jersey charges 6.625% sales tax and still counts 200 transactions toward economic nexus. Remotely accessed SaaS is generally not taxable; electronically delivered software is, unless bought for business use.
- PAPennsylvania receivablesPennsylvania taxes SaaS at 6%, with 7% in Allegheny County and 8% in Philadelphia, and requires remote sellers to register once sales pass $100,000.
Founder guides on this
- Sales taxSales tax nexus for startups: when you owe tax in a stateSince Wayfair, selling into a state can create a sales tax obligation. How economic nexus works, why SaaS is taxable in some states and when to register.
- StripeHow to reconcile Stripe payouts to your booksA Stripe payout is charges less fees, refunds and disputes, batched across days. How to book it gross, tie it to the bank, and keep revenue right.
- RevenueDeferred revenue for SaaS startups, explainedAn annual prepayment is cash today and revenue over a year. How deferred revenue works under ASC 606, why it’s a liability, and the schedule behind it.
More of the Delaware guide
- AccountingAccounting and state tax in DelawareCorporate tax, conformity to federal rules, apportionment and what it does to your books
- PayablesPayables and contractors in DelawarePaying vendors and contractors: 1099 filing, use tax, contractor tests and withholding
- PayrollPayroll taxes and employer rules in DelawareWithholding, unemployment insurance, paid leave, minimum wage and the rules on paydays
- ComplianceCompliance and filings in DelawareRegistering to do business, annual reports, franchise tax and the filing calendar
- AdvisoryAdvisory: credits and decisions in DelawareCredits, incentives and the decisions that are cheaper to get right the first time
Sources
Checked against each agency’s own page on . Rates and thresholds change, usually on January 1.
General information for US companies, not tax, legal or accounting advice for yours. Rules and thresholds change; confirm the specifics with a CPA or the agency before you act on them.