Hawaii Sales Tax Nexus: Economic Nexus Threshold (2026)

What to do after crossing the Hawaii threshold

We did not find a specific start-date rule for Hawaii in the sources reviewed. Check the official guidance before you begin collecting.

1. Confirm the numbers. Check your Hawaii sales against the measure and period in the key facts above.
2. Register before you collect. Use Hawaii's official registration page. Collecting a state's tax without a registration is generally not allowed.
3. Collect and file. Charge Hawaii sales tax (plus any local taxes that apply at the delivery address) on taxable sales from the start date, and file returns on the schedule the state assigns. Marketplaces generally collect on the sales they facilitate, so you usually collect on your direct sales.
4. Look back. If you crossed the threshold in an earlier period and did not register, get advice on those periods. Many states have voluntary disclosure programs that may limit penalties.

Physical presence and inventory in Hawaii

Physical presence includes an office, employees or representatives, inventory or other property in Hawaii, or providing services such as installation, training, maintenance or repair in Hawaii (Tax Announcement 2018-10). Inventory stored in Hawaii (including FBA/3PL) creates physical presence and requires a GET license regardless of the thresholds.

Marketplace sellers in Hawaii

Do marketplace sales count toward your own threshold? Yes, counted.

Per Tax Information Release 2019-03, if the marketplace facilitator is engaged in business in Hawaii, a marketplace seller must combine its direct sales into Hawaii, TPP it sends into Hawaii through any marketplace facilitator, and intangibles/services sold into Hawaii (via marketplace or not) to test the Act 41 thresholds. Act 2 (2019), effective 1/1/2020, deems the marketplace facilitator the retail seller (4% plus county surcharge) and treats the marketplace seller's sales through the facilitator as wholesale sales, so a marketplace seller engaged in business in Hawaii still owes GET at the 0.5% wholesale rate on TPP and services sold through a marketplace. The wholesale rate does not apply to intangibles.

Other things to know about Hawaii

• The GET is not a sales tax: the legal incidence is on the business, it applies to gross income from almost all business activity (including services and B2B), and sales to exempt customers such as nonprofits and government are still subject to GET. Passing the tax on to customers is optional, and any amount passed on becomes part of taxable gross income.
• County surcharge of 0.5% in all four counties (Honolulu since 2007, Kauai since 2019, Hawaii County at 0.5% since 2020, Maui since 1/1/2024), all scheduled through 12/31/2030. The combined retail rate is 4.5%, and the surcharge does not apply to wholesale income. The state collects the surcharge on the same G-45/G-49 returns.
• GET license (Form BB-1) requires a one-time $20 fee. A GET license automatically covers use tax registration. Periodic returns (G-45) are monthly if annual GET is over $4,000, quarterly if over $2,000 up to $4,000, and semiannual if $2,000 or less, due on the 20th day after the period. An annual G-49 is also required.
• When Act 41 was implemented, the department allowed a first-return grace period of one filing period after the threshold was first met (Tax Announcement 2018-10).