ST-556 Sales Tax Transaction Return Instructions

If you sell items at retail in Illinois or are a leasing company selling items that are of the type that must be titled or registered by an agency of Illinois state government (e.g., vehicles, watercraft, aircraft, trailers, manufactured (mobile) homes), you must register with the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) to collect Illinois Sales Tax and report these sales on Form ST‑556, Sales Tax Transaction Return. If you are a leasing company engaged in the business of selling such previously leased items to Illinois purchasers and the items are located in Illinois at the time of sale, you must report these sales on Form ST-556. Do not file Form ST-556 if the item is being sold for lease. Instead, use Form ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases.

Note: Effective January 1, 2025, sellers of trailers that must be registered, other than semitrailers as defined in Section 1-187 of the Illinois Vehicle Code, to persons engaged in the business of renting or leasing the trailers are authorized to sell these trailers as a nontaxable sale for resale (Exemption 5(b)). Effective January 1, 2025, persons engaged in the business of renting or leasing trailers other than semitrailers are subject to Illinois Sales and Use Tax and must report and pay tax on their rental or lease receipts as they are collected from the customer. Rentors and lessors of trailers other than semitrailers should not use Form ST-556 or Form ST-556-LSE to report rental or lease receipts from trailers other than semitrailers. Instead, rentors and lessors of trailers other than semitrailers should use Form LSE-1 to report these rental or lease receipts.

Remote Retailers and Marketplace Facilitators:

If you are a remote retailer or a marketplace facilitator who meets a tax remittance threshold (200 or more separate transactions per year or $100,000 or more in cumulative gross receipts from sales of tangible personal property to purchasers in Illinois; see the Leveling the Playing Field for Illinois Retail Act Resource Page for additional information), you must register with IDOR to report these sales on Form ST-556. Sales of tangible personal property required to be titled or registered with an agency of the State of Illinois, including motor vehicles, watercraft, aircraft, and trailers, that are made by a remote retailer or over a marketplace to purchasers in Illinois are sourced the same as all other sales made by a remote retailer or over a marketplace to purchasers in Illinois. See 86 Ill. Adm. Code 131.110(e) and 131.130(c). For sales made by a remote retailer or by a marketplace facilitator on behalf of marketplace sellers, taxes apply at the location in Illinois to which the titled or registered item is shipped or delivered, or the location in Illinois where the purchaser takes possession of the titled or registered item. For sales made by marketplace facilitators of their own items, the marketplace facilitator incurs State and local retailers’ occupation tax at the rate in effect at either the location of the inventory in Illinois or the location in Illinois at which the selling activities otherwise occur (as determined by applying the provisions of 86 Ill. Adm. Code 270.115(c) and (d)). For sales made by marketplace facilitators of their own items that are not fulfilled from inventory in Illinois and for which selling is not engaged in at any location in Illinois, taxes apply at the location in Illinois to which the titled or registered item is shipped or delivered or the location in Illinois where the purchaser takes possession of the titled or registered item.

If an Illinois purchaser travels to an out-of-State location to take possession of an item that is required to be titled or registered with an agency of the State of Illinois, the sale is sourced out of state and only Use Tax is incurred. The purchaser is responsible for filing the RUT-25, Vehicle Use Tax Transaction Return, and paying the tax. You do not need to file Form ST-556 or collect tax.

Yes. Anytime you sell an item at retail in Illinois that is of the type that must be titled or registered by an agency of Illinois state government, you must report the sale on Form ST‑556, regardless of whether you are reporting tax due. Failure to file Form ST-556 as required subjects you to possible penalties for each transaction that goes unreported.

If you make sales for resale in Illinois of items that must be reported on Form ST-556 and these items had been previously rented or leased, you have the option of bulk reporting these sales for resale on Form ST-556-D, Nontaxable Sales for Resale of Previously Rented or Leased Vehicles. See Part II: Leasing Companies Selling at Retail for more information.

Form ST-556 must be filed electronically if your annual gross receipts average $20,000 or more. Form ST-556 can be filed electronically by using MyTax Illinois at mytax.illinois.gov or by using an approved service provider in the Electronic Registration and Title (ERT) program.

Note: You may request a waiver of the electronic filing requirement if you do not have internet access or demonstrate hardship in filing electronically. Contact Taxpayer Assistance at 1 800 732-8866, 217 782-3336, or 1 800 544-5304 (TTY) to request a waiver form. Complete the waiver form and mail it to the address listed on the form. IDOR will notify you if the waiver request is approved or denied.

If you are not mandated to file Form ST-556 electronically or have received a waiver of the electronic filing requirement, you can request preprinted paper returns by calling our Central Registration Division at 217 785-3707. You can also obtain preprinted paper returns using MyTax Illinois. Note that preprinted paper forms will be pre-filled with certain information for each of your business locations. Related sales and use tax forms are available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.

The retailers’ allowance (discount) is an amount that retailers may claim only if the return is filed on or before the due date and only for a percentage of the taxes paid on or before the due date. This discount is allowed as a reimbursement for the expenses incurred in keeping records, preparing and filing returns, remitting the tax, and supplying data to IDOR on request.

For returns due on or after January 1, 2025, the discount is limited to $1,000 per month for all returns (i.e., both Forms ST-556 and ST-556-LSE) filed that month. The $1,000 monthly cap applies to vehicle sales with a delivery date on or after December 12, 2024, which corresponds to returns due on or after January 1, 2025. Retailers will no longer be able to reduce the tax remittance by the amount of the retailers’ allowance when filing Forms ST-556 and ST-556-LSE. To avoid potential billing and confusion, IDOR will calculate the discount on these returns through a monthly reconciliation process that will occur approximately 60 days after the end of a monthly liability period. The retailers’ allowance will be issued once the reconciliation process is completed each month.

If you are not mandated to file Forms ST-556 and ST-556-LSE electronically and file using paper returns, do not enter a figure on the retailers’ allowance line. You must remit all tax reported as due on your return to be issued the retailers’ allowance, as applicable, through IDOR’s monthly reconciliation process.

If you make a mistake on a preprinted paper Form ST-556, write “VOID” across the form. Keep the voided return in your records for at least 42 months. Do not send the form to us. You will need to complete a new form to send to IDOR.

If you need help, call our Taxpayer Assistance Division weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. at 1 800 732-8866, 217 782-3336, or 1 800 544-5304 (TTY).

You may also visit our website at tax.illinois.gov.

Language assistance services are available upon request and are free of charge.

See ST-9, A Guide for Reporting Sales Using Form ST-556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov, for additional guidance.

1: Enter the purchaser’s name and address

The purchaser’s name and address must be the same as the name and address on the application for title or registration. If there is more than one purchaser, be sure to enter each name.

2: Describe the item sold

Check the correct box (A – E) to show the type of item sold. If the type of item sold is not identified in boxes A – E, check box F and enter the type of item sold.

Check the correct box to show whether the item sold is new or used.

Next, enter the appropriate identification number for the item sold, such as a vehicle identification number (VIN) for vehicles, trailers, and manufactured (mobile) homes, a hull identification number (HIN) for watercraft, or (N) number for aircraft.

Finally, enter the year, make, body style, and model of the item sold.

Note: If you sold more than one type of item (e.g., a watercraft and a trailer) or more than one item of the same type (e.g., three motor vehicles) you generally must complete a separate Form ST-556 for each item sold. If, however, you wish to report sales for resale or sales for use as rolling stock of more than one of the same type of item to the same purchaser with the same date of delivery, you may file Form ST‑556‑R, Resale and Rolling Stock Fleet Exemption Schedule, with a single Form ST‑556.

3: Enter the date of delivery

Enter the month, day, and year in which the purchaser took possession of the item.

Note: This return is due no later than 20 calendar days after the date of delivery.

4: Describe the trade-in, if any

If you are not claiming a qualified trade-in, skip this section and go to Section 5.

If you are claiming a qualified trade-in, enter the type of item traded in (e.g., automobile, truck, airplane, boat, trailer). Next, enter the appropriate identification number, year, make, body style, and model of the trade-in.

What is a qualified trade-in?

A qualified trade-in is an item:

• that the purchaser gives you to reduce the selling price (in part or in full) of the item sold;
• that you are allowed to subtract from the selling price; and
• that you are in the business of selling.

You are “in the business of selling” a particular kind of item if you hold yourself out to the public as being engaged in (or habitually engage in) selling such items.

Example: You may claim the trade-in of a boat on an auto if you are in the business of selling both boats and autos. However, you may not claim the trade-in of a boat on an auto if you are in the business of selling only autos.

Note: For sales made on or after January 1, 2020, up to and including December 31, 2021, for purposes of calculating your Sales Tax due, you cannot claim trade-in credit exceeding $10,000 for any first division motor vehicle that was traded in during the sale being reported on Form ST-556. For sales made on or after January 1, 2022, the $10,000 trade-in credit limit no longer applies.

5: Exempt or sale to a nonresident

If the sale is to an Illinois resident and also taxable, skip this section and go to Section 6.

If the sale is exempt from tax, check the correct box (A – F), and complete Section 6, Lines 1 and 2.

If the sale is to a nonresident purchaser who is subject to tax (i.e., a non-reciprocal purchaser), complete box A as instructed below and complete all of Section 6.

If you are not required to submit title or registration paperwork on the item, send the return directly to us at:

ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
RETAILERS’ OCCUPATION TAX
PO BOX 19042
SPRINGFIELD IL 62794-9042

A. Sold to a nonresident purchaser

Check this box if you sold an item to a nonresident purchaser who is not an out-of-State dealer, and who took possession of the item  in Illinois, and either:

• you issued a drive-away permit for the item sold; or
• the purchaser transferred out-of-State license plates to the item sold.

If you issued a drive-away permit, enter the drive-away permit number and the two-letter state abbreviation of the purchaser’s state of residence in the space provided. If the purchaser transferred current out-of-State license plates to the item sold, enter the out-of- State license plate number and the two-letter state abbreviation in the space provided.

Non-Reciprocal Buyer

Exemption is determined by whether the purchaser’s state gives Illinois residents a nonresident purchaser exemption on their purchases of items that will be titled in Illinois. See ST-58, Reciprocal - Non-Reciprocal Vehicle Tax Rate Chart, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov, and the instructions for Section 6, Line 4 below for more information.

Note: If you claim the nonresident purchaser exemption, keep a copy of the purchaser’s valid out-of-State driver’s license in your records as proof of nonresidency. You also are responsible for obtaining a signed certification documenting the purchaser’s eligibility for the nonresident purchaser exemption. As a condition of claiming this exemption, nonresident purchasers must certify that they are not residents of Illinois. See ST-588, Nonresidency Exemption Certification for Sales and Leases of Motor Vehicles and Trailers, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov. Retain this certification in your records as proof that no tax was due on the sale of the specified item.

Indiana Purchaser of an RV or Cargo Trailer

If you sell a recreational vehicle or a cargo trailer to a purchaser that will title or register that item in Indiana, the transaction is exempt from Illinois tax if a drive-away permit is issued or the Indiana purchaser has vehicle registration plates to transfer to the item upon returning to Indiana. You must check Section 5, box F, “Other” and enter “recreational vehicle” or “cargo trailer” on the line provided.

B. Sold for resale to a DEALER

Check this box if you sold the item to either an Illinois or out-of-State dealer for resale.

• If you sold to an Illinois dealer, enter the dealer’s account ID number in the space provided. This includes, beginning January 1, 2025, sales to lessors of trailers other than semitrailers who are subject to sales tax on the lease or rental of the trailers.
• If you sold to an Illinois dealer as junk or salvage or for parts, enter “Junked,” “Salvage,” or “Parts Only” after the account ID number.
• If you sold to an out-of-State dealer, enter “Out‑of‑State Dealer” in the space provided for the account ID number.

Keep a completed Form CRT-61, Certificate of Resale, in your books and records for documentation.

C. Sold to an exempt organization

Check this box if you sold the item to an exempt organization that has an active Illinois Sales Tax exemption “E” number, such as:

• a governmental body;
• a school;
• a religious organization; or
• a charitable organization.

In the space provided, enter the organization’s active Illinois Sales Tax exemption “E” number. The purchaser must be the organization itself rather than a member or officer of the organization. The item must be titled or registered in the organization’s name and paid for with the organization’s funds. The organization’s exemption number must have been in effect on the day you made the sale.

D. Sold to an interstate carrier for hire for use as rolling stock

Check this box if you sold an item for use as rolling stock to haul persons or commodities for hire in interstate commerce. In the space provided, enter the certificate of authority number. Keep a properly completed Form RUT-7, Rolling Stock Certification, in your books and records for documentation.

E. Sold for rental use

Check this box if:

• you sold the item to a business that is registered to collect Automobile Renting Occupation Tax; and
• the purchaser will use the item for rental purposes in rental agreements of one year or less.

Enter the purchaser’s Illinois Automobile Renting Occupation Tax account ID number.

F. Other

Check this box if the sale is exempt for a reason not identified in boxes A – E.

For example:

• You sold a recreational vehicle or cargo trailer to a purchaser that will title and register the item in Indiana and you have issued a drive-away permit or the Indiana purchaser has vehicle registration plates to transfer to the item upon returning to Indiana. In the space provided, enter “recreational vehicle” or “cargo trailer.”
• You delivered (or caused to be delivered) an item to a purchaser outside Illinois. In the space provided, enter “Delivered Out-of-State.”
• You sold the item to a foreign consul who has a card from the U.S. Department of State declaring that the foreign consul does not have to pay sales tax on that item. In the space provided, enter “Foreign Consul.”
• You will use the item for your own interim use. For the item to remain exempt from sales or use tax, it must remain in your sales inventory and be available for sale at all times. In the space provided, enter “Interim Use.”

If you have aircraft or watercraft that you have purchased for resale in your sales inventory and you use these items for demonstration or business purposes, you must pay Illinois Use Tax on your cost price of these items if you hold them for more than 18 months. If you later sell the items and collect Illinois Sales Tax, you cannot claim credit for any Illinois Use Tax you may have paid.

6: Enter the price, and figure the tax

Note: When completing Section 6, round to the nearest dollar by dropping amounts of less than 50 cents and increasing amounts of 50 cents or more to the next higher dollar.

Line 1: Enter the selling price, including accessories, federal excise taxes, freight and labor, dealer preparation, documentary fees, and any rebates or incentives for which you as a dealer receive reimbursement. Clean vehicle credits that are applied toward the purchase of a clean vehicle should be included as part of the taxable selling price of the vehicle. Do not subtract the value of any rebate made directly to the customer. In general, any cost passed on to the customer as part of the sale of an item and for which gross receipts are received should be included in the selling price.

Note: If you are selling a new truck weighing 33,000 pounds or more or a new trailer or semitrailer chassis weighing 26,000 pounds or more, you may exclude the federal excise tax from the selling price.

Line 2: If you claimed a qualified trade-in (see Section 4), enter the total trade-in credit or value (see Note below). You must identify the traded-in item in the spaces provided in Section 4.

If you claimed an exemption in Section 5 and no tax is due, you do not need to complete the remaining Lines 3 – 14 of Section 6. Remember that you and all purchasers must sign the return.

Note: For sales made on or after January 1, 2020, up to and including December 31, 2021, for purposes of calculating your Sales Tax due, you cannot claim trade-in credit exceeding $10,000 for any first division motor vehicle that was traded in during the sale being reported on Form ST-556. For sales made on or after January 1, 2022, the $10,000 trade-in credit limit no longer applies.

Line 3: Subtract Line 2 from Line 1.

Line 4: Calculate your tax due using the following to determine the appropriate rate:

• If you made this sale at your standard business location (i.e., the location printed on the front of the paper Form ST-556 returns IDOR issues to you), multiply Line 3 by the tax rate printed on your return.
• If you made this sale at an off-site location (e.g., a tent sale), follow the instructions on ST‑23, How to Report Off-Site Sales on Form ST‑556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, or Form ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.
• If you made this sale to a nonresident who is taking delivery of the item in Illinois but who will title it in a state that does not have a reciprocal nonresident purchaser exemption for Illinois residents, multiply Line 3 by the nonresident’s state sales tax rate, up to 6.25 percent. See ST-58, Reciprocal - Non-Reciprocal Vehicle Tax Rate Chart, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.
• If you are a remote retailer or a marketplace facilitator who meets a tax remittance threshold (200 or more separate transactions per year or $100,000 or more in cumulative gross receipts from sales of tangible personal property to purchasers in Illinois), see the General Information section of these instructions captioned “Remote Retailers and Marketplace Facilitators” and multiply Line 3 by the tax rate for the location where the sale is sourced in accordance with those instructions.

Note for business locations in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, or Will County when the customer’s address is in Chicago:

If your sales location is in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, or Will County and the purchaser’s address on Form ST‑556, Section 1, is within the corporate limits of the city of Chicago, you must collect an additional 1.25 percent (.0125) Chicago Home Rule Use Tax. To help you calculate the tax due on one of these sales, we preprint a combined rate below Line 4 on the paper Form ST-556 returns IDOR issues to you. This combined rate includes your tax rate, plus the additional 1.25 percent Chicago Home Rule Use Tax. 

To figure the correct tax due, multiply the amount subject to tax on Line 3 by the combined rate. Enter the result on Line 4.

Line 5: Read these instructions if your buyer’s address is in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, Madison, or St. Clair County.

If the item will be titled or registered in an area in which tax has been imposed by the Regional Transportation Authority or Metro‑East Transit District, the purchaser may owe additional tax. If your sales location is within the boundaries of one of these areas, the additional tax is already included in your combined tax rate. If, however, your sales location falls outside these boundaries, you are not required to collect any additional use tax, but you may do your purchaser the courtesy of collecting the additional tax so that the purchaser will not be billed for it later.

If you have determined that the purchaser is subject to the additional use tax and you have decided to collect and remit that additional tax on the purchaser’s behalf, multiply the amount on Line 3 by any difference in rates (expressed as a decimal), and enter the result on Line 5. Finally, enter the name of the Illinois county in which the purchaser’s address is located. If the purchaser’s address falls within the limits of an Illinois city or village, enter the name of the city or village. If the purchaser’s address falls within Madison or St. Clair County, enter the name of the township in which the address is located.

Do not report municipal or county home rule use tax on Line 5.

Line 6: Add Lines 4 and 5.

Line 7: For returns due on or after January 1, 2025, this discount for timely filing and payment is limited to $1,000 per month for all returns (i.e., both Forms ST-556 and ST-556-LSE) filed that month. Do not enter a figure on Line 7. You must remit all tax reported as due on Form ST-556 to be issued the retailers’ allowance, as applicable, through IDOR’s monthly reconciliation process.

Note: Line 7a is preprinted only if you have a business location in the Metro-East Mass Transit District portion of St. Clair County.

Line 7a: IDOR is responsible for collecting and administering the fee imposed in the Metro-East Mass Transit District on items that are required to be titled or registered in Illinois. Multiply Line 3 by 0.5 percent (0.005).

• If the result is less than $20, enter the result on Line 7a.
• If the result is $20 or more, enter $20 on Line 7a.

Line 8: Subtract Line 7 from Line 6. If you calculated an amount on Line 7a according to the above instruction, subtract Line 7 from Line 6, and then add to that total the amount on Line 7a.

Line 9: If we have notified you that you have an overpayment credit on your account, you may use this overpayment credit to pay some or all of the tax due on this return. Enter the amount you wish to use.

Line 10: This credit is applicable only to lessors selling previously leased items at the expiration of the lease term. See Part II: Leasing Companies Selling at Retail for instructions on how to claim a credit for tax paid on an item you are now selling at the end of a lease.

Line 11: If you collected more tax than is due on this sale, enter the amount you overcollected.

Line 12: Subtract Lines 9 and 10 from Line 8 and add Line 11.

Line 13: If you have a credit memorandum and you wish to use it towards what you owe, enter the amount you are using on Line 13.

Line 14: Subtract Line 13 from Line 12, and enter the amount due. Also, enter the identifying number from the remittance you are sending to pay the tax due on this return. If you are filing more than one Form ST-556, enclose a separate remittance for each return.

Sign the return

Both the seller and all purchasers must sign the return.

If you claimed a qualified trade-in for the item sold, the signatures also declare that the title of the traded-in item has been properly assigned and surrendered to the seller.

Penalty and Fee Information

We will bill you for any amounts owed, including the following penalties and fees:

• You owe a late filing penalty if you do not file a processable return by the due date.
• You owe a late payment penalty if you do not pay the amount you owe by the original due date of the return.
• You owe a bad check penalty if your remittance is not honored by your financial institution.
• You owe a cost of collection fee if you do not pay the amount you owe within 30 days of the date printed on a bill that we send you.
• You owe a nonfiling penalty for transaction returns if you do not file a processable transaction return (ST-556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, or ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases) by the due date, but only if no tax is due on the return.

For more information, see Publication 103, Penalties and Interest for Illinois Taxes, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.

1: Enter the purchaser’s name and address

The purchaser’s name and address must be the same as the name on the application for title or registration. If there is more than one purchaser, be sure to enter each name.

2: Describe the item sold

Check the correct box (A-E) to show the type of item sold. If the type of item sold is not identified in boxes A-E, check box F and enter the type of item sold.

Check the correct box to show whether the item sold is new or used.

Next, enter the appropriate identification number for the item sold, such as a vehicle identification number (VIN) for vehicles, trailers, and manufactured (mobile) homes, a hull identification number (HIN) for watercraft, or (N) number for aircraft.

Finally, enter the year, make, body style, and model of the item sold.

Note: If you sold more than one type of item (e.g., a watercraft and a trailer) or more than one item of the same type (e.g., three motor vehicles) you generally must complete a separate Form ST-556 for each item sold. You may, however, report sales for resale of previously rented or leased items on Form ST-556-D, Tax-Exempt Sales for Resale of Previously Rented or Leased Vehicles. Form ST-556-D allows you to report multiple sales for resale, to the same or multiple purchasers, on the same schedule. Form ST-556-D must be filed electronically using MyTax Illinois, available at mytax.illinois.gov.

3: Enter the date of delivery

Enter the month, day, and year in which the purchaser took possession of the item. If the purchaser has been leasing the item and, therefore, already has possession of it, enter the date you applied for a change in the title.

Note: This return is due no later than 20 calendar days after the date of delivery.

4: Describe the trade-in, if any

If you are not claiming a qualified trade-in, skip this section and go to Section 5.

If you are claiming a qualified trade-in, enter the type of item traded in (e.g., automobile, truck, airplane, boat, trailer). Next, enter the appropriate identification number, year, make, body style, and model of the trade-in.

What is a qualified trade-in?

A qualified trade-in is an item:

• that the purchaser gives you to reduce the selling price (in part or in full) of the item sold;
• that you are allowed to subtract from the selling price; and
• that you are in the business of selling.

You are “in the business of selling” a particular kind of item if you hold yourself out to the public as being engaged in (or habitually engage in) selling such items.

Example: You may claim the trade-in of a boat on an auto if you are in the business of selling both boats and autos.

However, you may not claim the trade-in of a boat on an auto if you are in the business of selling only autos.

Note: For sales made on or after January 1, 2020, up to and including December 31, 2021, for purposes of calculating your Sales Tax due, you cannot claim trade-in credit exceeding $10,000 for any first division motor vehicle that was traded in during the sale being reported on Form ST-556. For sales made on or after January 1, 2022, the $10,000 trade-in credit limit no longer applies.

5: Exempt

If the sale is to an Illinois resident and taxable, skip this section and go to Section 6.

If the sale is exempt from tax, check the correct box (A-F), and complete Section 6, Lines 1 and 2.

If you are not required to submit title or registration paperwork on the item, send the return directly to us at:

ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
RETAILERS’ OCCUPATION TAX
PO BOX 19042
SPRINGFIELD IL 62794-9042

A. Sold to a nonresident purchaser (NOT an out-of-State dealer)

Note: An off-lease sale by a leasing company to a nonresident purchaser is an unusual situation. In Illinois, an off-lease sale is typically made to the Illinois lessee who leased the vehicle.

Check this box if you sold an item to a nonresident purchaser who is not an out-of-State dealer, and who took possession of the item in Illinois, and either:

• you issued a drive-away permit for the item sold; or
• the purchaser transferred out-of-State license plates to the item sold.

If you issued a drive-away permit, enter the drive-away permit number and the two-letter state abbreviation of the purchaser’s state of residence in the space provided. If the purchaser transferred current out-of-State license plates to the item sold, enter the out-of-State license plate number and the two-letter state abbreviation in the space provided.

Non-Reciprocal Buyer

Exemption is determined by whether the purchaser’s state gives Illinois residents a nonresident purchaser exemption on their purchases of items that will be titled in Illinois. See ST-58, Reciprocal - Non-Reciprocal Vehicle Tax Rate Chart, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov, and the instructions for Section 6, Line 4 below for more information.

Note: If you claim the nonresident purchaser exemption, keep a copy of the purchaser’s valid out-of-State driver’s license in your records as proof of nonresidency. You also are responsible for obtaining a signed certification documenting the purchaser’s eligibility for the nonresident purchaser exemption. As a condition of claiming this exemption, nonresident purchasers must certify that they are not residents of Illinois. See ST-588, Nonresidency Exemption Certification for Sales and Leases of Motor Vehicles and Trailers, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov. Retain this certification in your records as proof that no tax was due on the sale of the specified item.

Indiana Purchaser of an RV or Cargo Trailer

If you sell a recreational vehicle or a cargo trailer to a purchaser that will title or register that item in Indiana, the transaction is exempt from Illinois tax if a drive-away permit is issued or the Indiana purchaser has vehicle registration plates to transfer to the item upon returning to Indiana. You must check Section 5, box F, “Other” and enter “recreational vehicle” or “cargo trailer” on the line provided.

B. Sold for resale to a DEALER

Check this box if you sold the item to an Illinois dealer for resale. Enter the Illinois account ID number of the dealer to whom you sold the item. If you sold to an Illinois dealer as junk or salvage or for parts, enter “Junked,” “Salvage,” or “Parts Only” after the account ID number. Keep a completed Form CRT-61, Certificate of Resale, in your records for documentation. See “Who must file Form ST-556?” in the General Information section of these instructions.

You can also use Form ST-556-D, Nontaxable Sales for Resale of Previously Rented or Leased Vehicles, for multiple sales for resale of vehicles coming off a lease or rental. Form ST-556-D must be filed electronically using MyTax Illinois, available at mytax.illinois.gov.

C. Sold to an exempt organization

Check this box if you sold the item to one of the following tax-exempt Illinois purchasers that have an active Illinois Sales Tax exemption “E” number:

• a government agency;
• a school;
• a religious organization; or
• a charitable organization.

In the space provided, enter the organization’s active Illinois Sales Tax exemption “E” number. To qualify, the purchaser must be the organization itself rather than a member or officer of the organization. The item must be titled and/or registered in the organization’s name and paid for with the organization’s funds. The organization’s exemption number must have been in effect on the day you made the sale.

D. Sold to an interstate carrier for hire for use as rolling stock

Check this box if you sold an item for use as rolling stock to haul persons or commodities for hire in interstate commerce. In the space provided, enter the certificate of authority number. Keep a properly completed Form RUT-7, Rolling Stock Certification, in your books and records for documentation.

E. Sold for rental use

Check this box if:

• you sold the vehicle to a business that is registered to collect Automobile Renting Occupation Tax; and
• the purchaser will use the vehicle for rental purposes in rental agreements of one year or less.

Enter the purchaser’s Illinois Automobile Renting Occupation Tax account ID number.

F. Other

Check this box if the sale is exempt for a reason not identified in boxes A-E.

For example, you sold the item to a foreign consul who has a card from the U.S. Department of State declaring that the foreign consul does not have to pay sales tax on that item. In the space provided, enter “Foreign Consul.”

6: Enter the price and figure the tax

Note: When completing Section 6, round to the nearest dollar by dropping amounts of less than 50 cents and increasing amounts of 50 cents or more to the next higher dollar.

Line 1: Enter the selling price, including accessories, federal excise taxes, freight and labor, dealer preparation, documentary fees, and any rebates or incentives for which you as a dealer receive reimbursement. Clean vehicle credits that are applied toward the purchase of a clean vehicle should be included as part of the taxable selling price of the vehicle. Do not subtract the value of any rebate made directly to the customer. In general, any cost passed on to the customer as part of the sale of an item and for which gross receipts are received should be included in the selling price.

Line 2: If you claimed a qualified trade-in (see Section 4), enter the total trade-in credit or value (see Note below). You must identify the traded-in item in the spaces provided in Section 4.

If you claimed an exemption in Section 5 and no tax is due, you do not need to complete the remaining Lines 3-14 of Section 6.

Remember that you and all purchasers must sign the return.

Note: For sales made on or after January 1, 2020, up to and including December 31, 2021, for purposes of calculating your Sales Tax due, you cannot claim trade-in credit exceeding $10,000 for any first division motor vehicle that was traded in during the sale being reported on Form ST-556. For sales made on or after January 1, 2022, the $10,000 trade-in credit limit no longer applies.

Line 3: Subtract Line 2 from Line 1.

Special Instructions for Completing Line 4

Leasing company with no registered sales locations in Illinois

Line 4: Multiply Line 3 by the tax rate. This tax rate is determined by the purchaser’s address entered in Section 1. To find this tax rate, use the Tax Rate Database on our website at tax.illinois.gov, or call us at 1 800 732-8866 or 1 800 544-5304 (TTY). Also, enter the tax rate in the correct space on the form.

Leasing company with registered sales locations in Illinois

Line 4: Calculate your tax due using the following to determine the appropriate rate:

• If you made this sale at your standard business location (i.e., the location printed on the front of the paper Form ST-556 returns IDOR issues to you), multiply Line 3 by the tax rate printed on your return.
• If you made this sale at an off-site location (e.g., a tent sale), follow the instructions on ST‑23, How to Report Off-Site Sales on Form ST‑556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, or Form ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.
• If you made this sale to a nonresident who is taking delivery of the item in Illinois but who will title it in a state that does not have a reciprocal nonresident purchaser exemption for Illinois residents, multiply Line 3 by the nonresident’s state sales tax rate, up to 6.25 percent. See ST-58, Reciprocal - Non-Reciprocal Vehicle Tax Rate Chart, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.

Note for business locations in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, or Will County when the customer’s address is in Chicago:

If your sales location is in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, or Will County and the purchaser’s address on Form ST‑556, Section 1, is within the corporate limits of the city of Chicago, you must collect an additional 1.25 percent (.0125) Chicago Home Rule Use Tax. To help you calculate the tax due on one of these sales, we preprint a combined rate below Line 4 on the paper Form ST-556 returns IDOR issues to you. This combined rate includes your tax rate, plus the additional 1.25 percent Chicago Home Rule Use Tax.

To figure the correct tax due, multiply the amount subject to tax on Line 3 by the combined rate. Enter the result on Line 4.

Line 5: Enter the name of the Illinois county in which the purchaser’s address is located. If the purchaser’s address falls within the limits of an Illinois city or village, enter the name of the city or village. If the purchaser’s address falls within Madison or St. Clair County, enter the name of the township in which the address is located.

Do not enter a dollar amount on this line.

Line 6: Enter the amount from Line 4.

Line 7: If you are filing this return and paying the tax due within 20 days of the date of delivery entered in Section 3, multiply Line 6 by the rate printed on your return.

Line 7a: IDOR is responsible for collecting and administering the fee imposed by the Metro-East Mass Transit District (MED) on items that are required to be titled or registered in Illinois. You must collect this fee if, at the end of a lease, you sell a motor vehicle that is located in the MED portion of St. Clair County. Multiply Line 3 by 0.5 percent (0.005).

• If the result is less than $20, enter the result on Line 7a.
• If the result is $20 or more, enter $20 on Line 7a.

Line 8: Subtract Line 7 from Line 6. If you calculated an amount on Line 7a according to the above instruction, subtract Line 7 from Line 6, and then add to that total the amount on Line 7a.

Line 9: If we have notified you that you have an overpayment credit on your account, you may use this overpayment credit to pay some or all of the tax due on this return. Enter the amount you wish to use.

Line 10: You may be able to claim a credit for tax paid on an item you are now selling at the end of a lease. You may claim this credit only if, when you purchased the item, tax was either collected by an Illinois retailer and reported on From ST-556 or Form ST-556-LSE, or paid directly to IDOR using Form RUT-25 or Form RUT-25-LSE.

Enter the amount of tax paid (but not exceeding the amount of tax due on Form ST-556 on which you are now reporting the retail sale of this previously leased item) and the tax return number from either the Form ST-556 or Form ST-556-LSE filed by the Illinois retailer when you purchased the item and paid the tax, or the Form RUT-25 or Form RUT-25-LSE filed when the item was purchased and the tax paid.

Note: If you are selling an item that was purchased for lease on or after January 1, 2015, you may not claim this credit if the selling price reported on the original Form ST-556-LSE or Form RUT-25-LSE when you purchased the item was the amount due under the lease contract; you may claim this credit only if the selling price reported was equal to the actual selling price.

Line 11: If you collected more tax than is due on this sale, enter the amount you overcollected.

Line 12: Subtract Lines 9 and 10 from Line 8 and add Line 11.

Line 13: If you have a credit memorandum and you wish to use it towards what you owe, enter the amount you are using on Line 13.

Line 14: Subtract Line 13 from Line 12, and enter the amount due. Also, enter the identifying number from the remittance you are sending to pay the tax due on this return. If you are filing more than one Form ST-556, enclose a separate remittance for each return.

Sign the return

Both the seller and all purchasers must sign the return. If you claimed a qualified trade-in for the item sold, the signatures also declare that the title of the traded-in item has been properly assigned and surrendered to the seller.

Penalty and Fee Information

We will bill you for any amounts owed, including the following penalties and fees:

• You owe a late filing penalty if you do not file a processable return by the due date.
• You owe a late payment penalty if you do not pay the amount you owe by the original due date of the return.
• You owe a bad check penalty if your remittance is not honored by your financial institution.
• You owe a cost of collection fee if you do not pay the amount you owe within 30 days of the date printed on a bill that we send you.
• You owe a nonfiling penalty for transaction returns if you do not file a processable transaction return (ST-556, Sales Tax Transaction Return, or ST-556-LSE, Transaction Return for Leases) by the due date, but only if no tax is due on the return.

For more information, see Publication 103, Penalties and Interest for Illinois Taxes, available on our website at tax.illinois.gov.

ST-556 Instructions (R-12/24)