Key takeaways
- Utah sales and use tax returns, including TC-62S and TC-62M returns, are filed in TAP, and a zero-activity period still needs a return.
- The Commission's sales tax page and its monthly page put the monthly line at different points, so confirm the assigned status in TAP before setting a calendar.
- Sales are entered by county and city, and TAP calculates the tax for each location.
- Marketplace sales that a facilitator collects tax on are not reported on the seller's own Utah return.
Where and how the return is filed
TC-62S and TC-62M returns must be filed electronically through the Taxpayer Access Point (TAP), according to the Tax Commission's sales tax page.
For a new client, create a TAP profile and then add the sales tax account with the Account ID Number and PIN for that account. For a client with several locations, the TAP filing page offers an Excel template (Tax Commission only version) and a Choose File upload.
A zero period still needs a return. The Commission says all returns must be filed for an active tax account even if the activity for the period was zero, so a client with no Utah sales in October still gets an October return.
Confirm the filing status before you set a calendar
The Commission assigns the status from annual sales and use tax liability. The main sales tax page lists $50,000 or less as Quarterly filer, $50,001 to $96,000 as Monthly filer, and $96,001 or more as Monthly filer with mandatory EFT payments.
The Commission's monthly page says any seller with an annual sales and use tax liability of $50,000 or more must file and pay monthly. Read literally, a client at exactly $50,000 is quarterly on one page and monthly on the other, and neither page settles that case.
Decision rule: if the liability is near the $50,000 line, check the status shown in TAP and any written Commission notice first. If the status is not confirmed in TAP or in writing, ask the Commission which schedule applies and file on the assigned schedule. The Commission's pages do not say what happens when a quarterly filer files monthly, so do not switch schedules on your own.
The Commission reviews accounts annually and notifies businesses in writing if the filing status changes. Save each letter in the client file and change the client's recurring request the same week, so a quarterly filer is not asked for monthly sales.
Due dates for 2026 periods and the 2027 filing season
Monthly returns and payments are due the last day of the month following each monthly period. October 2026 sales are due Monday, November 30, 2026, and November 2026 sales are due Thursday, December 31, 2026.
Quarterly filers file one return per calendar quarter, due April 30, July 31, October 31 and January 31. The fourth-quarter 2026 return is due January 31, 2027, a Sunday, so the next business day rule moves it to Monday, February 1, 2027.
The third-quarter 2026 return was due October 31, 2026, a Saturday, so the due date moved to Monday, November 2, 2026. As of November 9, 2026, a quarterly client who has not filed it is already late. File now and pay the full tax, because interest keeps running until the tax is paid.
Split the sales by county and city, then apply the rate
The Commission's Combined Rates table labeled 2026-01, which the page marks as Q1, shows a state ST rate of 4.70 percent. The Total Rate column gives the combined rate for each county and city, and Salt Lake City shows 8.45 percent in that table. The page does not state which table applies to which sales period, so match each sale to the table for its quarter and confirm it before applying the rate.
Worked example: a Salt Lake City client with $40,000 of taxable January 2026 sales owes $3,380 at the 8.45 percent Q1 2026 rate. Entering the same $40,000 at the 4.70 percent state rate alone shows $1,880 and understates the tax by $1,500. The error sits in the rate, not the sales total.
Enter sales by county and city, not as one total. TAP calculates the tax for each location, so a correct total entered against the wrong city still gives the wrong tax.
Groceries need a separate check. The rates table has a food column, SF State Food Tax Rate, that shows 1.75 in the rows reviewed, and a note that grocery items are charged a set state rate of 3.0 instead of the ST state tax. The page does not reconcile the two, so get the grocery rate from the Commission in writing.
Marketplace sales: what the seller reports
A marketplace facilitator with Utah nexus must hold a Utah sales tax license and collect, report and pay sales tax on the sales it facilitates. The Commission's marketplace page dates this rule to October 1, 2019.
A licensed seller still files its own sales tax returns, but it does not report sales made through a marketplace, and sellers are not liable for tax a facilitator is required to collect.
Decision rule: if all of the client's Utah sales run through a collecting facilitator, it files only its direct sales, at zero if there are none. Keep the facilitator's Utah report as support for the zero.
The common error is entering gross platform sales in TAP. Reconcile platform sales to the marketplace report each month and remove the facilitated amount before entry.
Remote sellers and the $100,000 test
A seller without a Utah location must collect if, in either the previous or the current calendar year, its gross revenue from taxable sales into Utah is more than $100,000. Before July 1, 2025, 200 or more separate transactions in either year also created nexus. The collection requirement applies to sales on or after January 1, 2019.
Worked example: a client with $104,000 of Utah sales in 2025 is over the test for 2026, whatever its 2026 volume. Pull prior-year Utah revenue in January. Ask the Commission in writing which date applies to a seller that crosses the line mid-year.
Interest, penalties and the seller discount
Interest runs on calendar days from the original due date until the tax is paid, at 6% for 2026. For a check on a 365-day year, the formula is unpaid tax times 0.06 times days, divided by 365.
Worked example: $3,380 unpaid for 90 days accrues $50.01 of interest before any penalty. Utah applies each payment first to penalties, then interest, then tax, under Rule R861-1A-18. A partial payment on a late return may therefore reduce the penalty and interest before it reduces the tax balance.
The penalty percentages are in Publication 58. The Commission's penalty page cites Publication 58, Utah Code 59-1-401 and 59-1-402, and does not state the percentages itself. Pull Publication 58 before quoting a penalty to a client.
Monthly filers may qualify for a 1.31 percent seller discount on certain sales and use taxes. They lose it if they file or pay late, and monthly filers paying by EFT must do so to qualify. On $3,380 of tax the discount is at most $44.28.
What to ask the client each month
Send this request every month: “Please send last month’s sales report split by city and county, including months with no sales, and send any marketplace reports separately by the 5th.” The 5th gives the firm time to enter the sales before the due date.
Ask for four things each period: sales by county and city, the facilitator's Utah report, exempt sales with the buyer's certificate, and any new location or state.
Usual's recurring requests repeat on a monthly, quarterly or annual cadence, can be overridden for one client, such as a quarterly filer, and stop reminding once the file arrives. Set the cadence from the status confirmed in TAP, not from last year's return.
Failure modes and fixes
Status carried over from last year. Fix: check the current liability and any Commission letter against TAP before the first return of the year.
Card payment. TAP charges a 3% card fee on card payments, while bank account payments are free. Pay by bank account and keep the confirmation with the return.
Late quarterly return. File now and pay the full tax to stop further interest, and keep any Commission notice in the client file.