Do contractors charge sales tax in Michigan?

In Michigan a contractor is treated as the CONSUMER of the materials they build into real property. That means the contractor pays sales tax when they buy the materials, and does not add sales tax to the customer's invoice for that work — the tax is already inside the price. Source: MCL 205.51 et seq.; Mich. Admin. Code R 205.71 (a contractor affixing property to realty is the consumer of that property).

WhatMichigan
Contractor’s default roleConsumer of materials
What the charge is calledSales Tax
Local rates on topNo local rates
Capital improvement exempt to the customerYes

Source

MCL 205.51 et seq.; Mich. Admin. Code R 205.71 (a contractor affixing property to realty is the consumer of that property).

Read the statute in the Michigan Compiled Laws (Michigan Legislature): legislature.mi.gov.

This is a summary of a state’s published guidance, not tax or legal advice. Rates and rules change, local jurisdictions add their own, and the treatment of a specific job depends on the contract and the work. Check the citation and speak to a CPA or a state tax adviser before relying on it.

How Seayora uses this rule

Seayora resolves this rule on every invoice a contractor raises — per line, from the job site’s own address — and prints the rate, the jurisdiction and this citation on the document itself, so the estimate a customer accepts is the invoice they are billed. Where the rule is more nuanced than a single answer, Seayora refuses to guess a total rather than quoting a confident wrong one.

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