When a tax-exempt guest orders in person, you can remove sales tax right at checkout, so they pay the correct amount with no refund needed.
What does "tax exempt" mean?
Some organizations, like churches, universities, schools, and government agencies, are legally exempt from paying sales tax. When a guest from one of these organizations places an in-person order at the counter, they may present a Tax Exempt ID or certificate and ask for tax to be removed from their order.
You apply the exemption on the Checkout screen while you build the order, before the guest pays. No refund is needed afterward.
Any signed-in staff member can apply a tax exemption. Unlike discounts and voids, it isn't restricted by role-based permissions.
Note: Tax exemptions are for in-person orders only. Staff apply them at the counter during checkout. They're not available for online orders placed through your website.
Apply a tax exemption
Apply the tax exemption on the Checkout screen, where you add items, apply discounts, and choose dine-in or to-go. Do it after you add items and before you tap the green Checkout button.
From the main menu, tap Checkout, then select In-store.
Add the guest's items to the cart as usual. For details, see Take an order on your Owner tablet or POS.
Before you tap Checkout, tap the three dots in the top-right corner, then tap Tax Exempt.
Type the guest's Tax Exemption Code and tap Done in the top-right corner. If you don't have a code, tap Skip instead.
Tap the green Checkout button and complete the payment as usual.
The code is optional, but entering it helps you link the order back to the exempt organization for accounting and compliance.
The tax exemption appears as a line item in the cart, and tax is removed from all taxable items. As you add more items, the exemption amount updates automatically. The total on the green Checkout button also shows the amount with tax removed.
Note: Non-taxable items and $0 items don't affect the exemption amount. Only taxable items are included in the calculation.
Remove a tax exemption
If you applied a tax exemption by mistake, you can remove it before you complete checkout. Once an exemption is applied, the Tax Exempt option in the menu changes to Remove Tax Exemption. Use either of these:
Tap the three dots in the top-right corner, then tap Remove Tax Exemption.
Swipe left on the tax exemption line item in the cart, then tap to remove it.
What the guest sees
The tax exemption shows in real time on the guest-facing terminal during checkout, so the guest sees $0.00 tax before they pay. After the order is complete, the tax-exempt status appears in all order views:
The POS order history
The Owner Dashboard
The restaurant mobile app
Printed receipts
If a Tax Exempt ID was entered, it also appears on the receipt and in order details.
Find tax-exempt orders in reporting
To review tax-exempt transactions for compliance or accounting:
Go to the Orders page in the Owner Dashboard and use the Tax Exempt filter.
Download the Orders CSV to view net sales for tax-exempt orders.