Please note: This blog was originally published in 2020. It’s since been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
Can you pay sales tax with a credit card? How about paying sales tax with cash? These are just some of the questions that e-commerce businesses ask when it comes time to actually remit sales tax you’ve collected back to the state.
To answer that, we researched every state to discover what payment methods they accept.
But before we get to the list, we did notice a few trends.
States moving toward EFT-only sales tax payment
Many states are phasing out, or already have phased out, payment by cash, check or money order in favor of recruiting taxpayers to pay their sales tax bills by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).
Arizona, for example, requires most taxpayers to pay via EFT. If a taxpayer elects not to, they’ll be hit with a 5% penalty. Ouch!
Be on the lookout for notifications from your state and be prepared to begin paying via EFT. If you really need to pay with cash or a check, we recommend contacting your state’s taxing authority to request a waiver.
ACH debit vs. ACH credit: What’s the difference?
The Automated Clearinghouse Network (ACH) is a very popular form of electronic funds transfer (EFT). To put it another way, all ACH transactions are a form of electronic funds transfer (AKA EFT,) but not all EFT transactions are powered by ACH.
Some states allow you to pay via ACH Debit or via ACH Credit, but what does that mean exactly?
- ACH Debit transactions take place when the institution—in this case, a state taxing authority—“pulls” money from your account.
- ACH Credit transactions take place when your bank “pushes” money to the institution’s bank account.
ACH Debit transactions are typically free, while ACH Credit transfers often come with a fee of up to $3. To initiate an ACH Credit you may even need to contact your bank. For that reason, ACH Debit is generally more commonly used.
A note on this table: Payment information can be surprisingly hard to find outside of the privacy of a state’s taxpayer portal. We’ve included links in this table if states provide public information about payment methods.
Also please note that some states provide public information about the many methods you can use to pay personal tax such as income tax, but not business tax like sales tax. We tried to be as thorough and accurate as possible here, but if you see a mistake or that something has changed, feel free to leave us a message in the comments and we’ll get that updated.
| State | Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) | Credit card | Other |
| Alabama | Yes, via ACH Debit from checking or savings account | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check |
| Arizona | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings account | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa or Visa or Mastercard branded debit cards (Convenience fee may apply) | Check, Cash (may be subject to 5% penalty if not paid electronically) |
| Arkansas | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
Visa & Mastercard
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| California | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Money Order |
| Colorado | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking | Any (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or Money Order |
| Connecticut | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A; most taxpayers are required to pay sales tax electronically |
| Georgia | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or Money Order |
| Florida | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit
from checking only |
Visa & Mastercard
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order but no cashier’s check |
| Idaho | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A |
| Illinois | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa | Check or money order |
| Indiana | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | Visa or MasterCard (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or money order, in person cash payment |
| Iowa | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or money order (payments must be at least $1); By phone with credit or debit card |
| Kansas | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking account | American Express, Discover, Mastercard,Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or Money order; BillMeLater |
| Kentucky | EFT Debit from checking or savings | No | Check or money order |
| Louisiana | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
(No convenience fee if paying through LATap – Louisiana Taxpayer Access Point website) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| Maryland | Yes, direct debit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or money order |
| Massachusetts | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| Michigan | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit | Yes, specific card providers not specified (Convenience fee may apply) | Check by mail |
| Minnesota | Yes, via ACH Credit | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or money order. In-person cash payments |
| Mississippi | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| Missouri | Credit or e-check. Debit is accepted and processed as credit | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A |
| Nebraska | Yes, using your bank account number and your routing number | Any | Check |
| New Jersey | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit or other EFT method | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A |
| New Mexico | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit | American Express, MasterCard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or Money Order |
| New York | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit | American Express, MasterCard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or Money Order |
| North Carolina | Yes, via Debt/Credit
from checking or savings (depending on your bank) |
Visa & Mastercard
Convenience fee is 2% |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| North Dakota | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit or Moneygram | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply); Interbank networks (Convenience fee may apply): Star, Pulse, Nyce | Check or Money Order, in person cash |
| Ohio | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A, Taxpayers are required to pay electronically |
| Pennsylvania | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit | American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa (Convenience fee may apply); Mastercard or Visa debit cards | Check; Certified cashier’s check required for payments over $1,000 |
| Rhode Island | Yes, via Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off
check, money order or cashier’s check |
| South Carolina | Yes, via Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
American Express, Mastercard, Visa;
No fees apply |
Can mail or drop off check, money order or cashier’s check |
| South Dakota | Yes, via Debit/Credit from checking or savings | Discover, Mastercard & Visa
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order
or cashier’s check |
| Tennessee | Yes, via Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
Visa & Mastercard
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off
check, money order or cashier’s check (Note: The state is phasing this out in favor of EFT only) |
| Texas | WebEFT from checking or savings account | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A, most taxpayers required to pay electronically |
| Utah | EFT via e-check | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A, most taxpayers required to pay electronically |
| Vermont | Yes, via ACH Debit from checking or savings account | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Personal check, cashier’s check, money order |
| Virginia | Yes, via ACH Debit/Credit from checking or savings | No | No, businesses required to file electronically |
| Washington | EFT debit or EFT credit; e-check | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | Check or cash, but only if you receive a waiver from mandatory electronic filing |
| West Virginia | Yes, via ACH Credit or Debit from checking or savings | American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa (Convenience fee may apply) | N/A, most taxpayers required to pay electronically |
| Wisconsin | Yes, via Debit/Credit
from checking or savings |
American Express, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off (by appointment only)
by check, money order or cashier’s check (Note: The state is phasing this out in favor of EFT only) |
| Wyoming | Yes, via Debt/Credit
from checking or savings |
Visa & Mastercard
(Convenience fee may apply) |
Can mail or drop off check, money order, cash or cashier’s check |
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