How to Get a Resale Certificate and Set Up Your Coin-Selling Business

Before you buy your first case of silver rounds at wholesale, before you run your first live show, and well before you worry about which platform converts best, you have to do something far less exciting: set up a real business. The resellers who get the best pricing, open accounts with serious suppliers, and survive their first tax season are the ones who treated this step like it mattered. This guide walks through how to get a resale certificate and set up your coin-selling business, from choosing a structure to getting approved for a wholesale program.

We are a US-based, veteran-owned dealer that has been in this business since 2016, specializing in custom-designed silver, gold, and copper bullion and collectible coins. We are also a wholesale supplier to the resellers who sell on WhatNot, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, so we see firsthand what separates the applicants we can approve quickly from the ones we have to turn away. If you want to read more about who we are first, see our about page, or jump straight to applying for wholesale.

Nothing in this article is legal or tax advice. Business and tax rules vary by state and by your specific situation. Verify everything with your state’s department of revenue and a qualified accountant before you act.

Why the paperwork matters for sourcing

A wholesaler is not a retail counter. When you open a wholesale account, the supplier is extending you dealer pricing, sometimes pre-order access, and often exclusive or custom designs that never hit the retail catalog. They want to know they are selling to a legitimate business that is buying for resale, not a consumer trying to dodge sales tax. The documents below are how you prove that.

Just as important, getting this right protects your own margins. If you cannot buy inventory tax-free for resale, you are paying sales tax on goods you intend to sell again — a cost that quietly eats into thin bullion margins. And if your books are a mess, you will not know which products actually make money until it is too late.

Step 1: Choose a business structure

Most coin and bullion resellers operate as either a sole proprietorship or a limited liability company (LLC). Here is the general landscape.

Sole proprietorship

The simplest option. There is little to no formal setup in many states, and you report income on your personal return. The trade-off is that there is no legal separation between you and the business, so your personal assets are exposed if something goes wrong.

LLC

An LLC creates a legal entity separate from you, which can offer liability protection and tends to look more professional to suppliers and payment processors. There is paperwork and usually a state filing fee, and some states charge an annual fee or franchise tax. Many resellers form an LLC once they are buying inventory in real volume.

Other structures

Partnerships and corporations exist, and there are tax-election nuances (such as how an LLC is taxed) that can matter as you grow. This is exactly the kind of decision to run past an accountant rather than copy from a forum thread. The structure you choose affects taxes, liability, and how you file — so get it right early.

Step 2: Get an EIN

An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is a federal tax ID for your business, issued by the IRS. Even if you have no employees, an EIN is useful: many banks want one to open a business account, suppliers often ask for it on a wholesale application, and it lets you keep your Social Security number off your paperwork.

A sole proprietor with no employees can sometimes operate under their SSN, but getting an EIN is generally quick and worthwhile. Confirm your specific obligation with your accountant.

Step 3: Understand sales tax and the resale certificate

This is the single most important document for sourcing inventory, so it gets its own section.

What a resale certificate is

A resale certificate (sometimes called a resale license, reseller’s permit, or sales-tax exemption certificate, depending on your state) lets you buy goods intended for resale without paying sales tax at the point of purchase. Instead, sales tax is collected from the end customer when you sell the item, and you remit it to your state. The certificate is what you hand a wholesaler so they can sell to you tax-free in good faith.

Why wholesalers require it

When we open a wholesale account, we generally need a valid resale or sales-tax certificate on file. Without it, a supplier may be obligated to charge you sales tax, which defeats the purpose of buying at wholesale for resale. A current, correct certificate is often the gating item on a wholesale application — get it in order before you apply and you will be approved faster.

How to get one

In most states you first register for a sales-tax permit with your state’s department of revenue (this also sets up your obligation to collect and remit sales tax on your own sales). From there you can issue resale certificates to your suppliers. The exact name, process, and renewal cadence vary by state, and rules around what counts as a valid certificate differ — so confirm your state’s specific requirements directly with the department of revenue and your accountant.

Keep it current

Some states expire or require periodic renewal of resale certificates. An expired certificate can stall a reorder at the worst possible moment, so track the renewal date alongside your other business deadlines.

Step 4: Open a separate business bank account

Mixing personal and business money is the fastest way to lose track of your real margins. Open a dedicated business checking account, and ideally a business card, and run every purchase and sale through it. Benefits:

• Clean margins. You can see exactly what you spent on inventory versus what came in from sales.
• Easier bookkeeping and taxes. No untangling personal coffee runs from a case of silver.
• More credibility. Suppliers and processors take a real business account more seriously than a personal Venmo.

Most banks will want your formation documents and EIN to open the account, which is why the earlier steps come first.

Step 5: Set up bookkeeping from day one

You do not need expensive software to start. Even a simple spreadsheet that records, per item or per lot:

• Cost paid
• Spot price at purchase (for bullion)
• Sale price
• Platform and payment fees (WhatNot, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, processors)
• Shipping and supplies

…will tell you which products and which channels actually make money. As you scale, dedicated bookkeeping software and an accountant become worth the cost. Good records also make sales-tax filing and income-tax season dramatically less painful.

Step 6: Gather what wholesalers ask for, then apply

When you are ready to source at dealer pricing, you will need to open a wholesale account. Here is the checklist of documents a wholesale supplier typically asks for so you can have everything ready before you start the wholesale application:

• Legal business name and structure (and any DBA / trade name)
• EIN (or SSN for some sole proprietors)
• A valid resale / sales-tax certificate for your state
• Business contact details — address, phone, email
• Where you sell — your storefront, WhatNot handle, Facebook group, Instagram, or TikTok presence
• Banking or payment information as required to set up terms and orders

Having these in hand signals that you are a serious, legitimate reseller and speeds up approval. You can review how the program works on the wholesale page and see the kind of inventory you would be buying in our products catalog and our partner / exclusive designs.

Step 7: Get approved and start sourcing

Once your account is approved, you unlock dealer pricing, volume breaks, and access to pre-orders and custom or exclusive designs that are a big part of what helps resellers stand out. From there it is about building an inventory rhythm — which is a topic we cover in our guide to sourcing bullion and coin inventory for reselling.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Skipping the resale certificate and “figuring it out later.” This is the one document that blocks both tax-free buying and wholesale approval. Do it first.
• Running everything through a personal account. You will never trust your own margin numbers.
• Buying inventory before you understand your sales-tax obligations. You collect and remit on your sales; get clear on this with your accountant early.
• Treating an LLC as automatic protection. Structure helps, but sloppy commingling of funds undermines it. Keep the business and personal sides genuinely separate.
• Letting your certificate or filings lapse. Track renewal dates the way you track reorder dates.

Get set up, then get sourcing

Set up the structure, get your EIN, secure your resale certificate, separate your finances, and keep clean books. With that foundation in place, you are ready to buy real inventory at real wholesale pricing. When you are ready, apply for our wholesale program, review the details on the wholesale page, or get in touch with any questions. You can also browse more sourcing guidance on the blog.