There's a new line item for sales tax on my campaign—what's up with that?
Intangible digital services—including digital advertising placements such as those purchased through our Ads Platform—are typically considered exempt from state and local sales tax.
Washington (WA) is an exception to that rule and does mandate collection and remittance of state and local sales tax for all digital and CTV advertising placements due to their classification as 'retail services'. Additionally, following a recent 'Technical Corrections Bill' passed by Washington's legislature on March 30, 2026, the state has updated its methodology for sourcing sales tax on advertising. Effective April 1, 2026, sales tax is now sourced to the location where the impression is served.
To comply with these changes in state law, the Ads Platform will now assess Washington's maximum state and local sales tax (currently 10.6%) on any advertising campaign that includes audience and/or geo-targeting to any cities, zip codes, political districts, or statewide targeting in the state of Washington. This tax will be assessed regardless of your entities' physical presence in the state and will be applied to the full media buy budget AND any Managed Service Fees at the time of purchase, pursuant to state law. This tax cannot be rolled into your overall ad budget. It must be charged on top of your media buy and services subtotal amount.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding that this new regulatory requirement is out of our control.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What if my campaign targets Washington and also targets other locations outside of Washington?
On a quarterly basis our tax and compliance team will audit users's tax payments against the actual amount of budget spent in Washington state. If it is determined that an overpayment of tax was collected, we will process a credit back to your Ad Account Wallet within 60-days of the audit's completion. For the most accurate tax assessment, we recommend running separate campaigns for Washington State rather than combining them with targeting to other geo-locations.
What if I stopped my campaign early and didn't spend the full budget that I paid tax on?
Similar to the previous question, our tax and compliance team will audit users' tax payments against the actual amount of budget spent in Washington state on a quarterly basis. If it is determined that an overpayment of tax was collected, we will process a credit back to your Ad Account Wallet within 60-days of the audit's completion.
Can I pay the tax directly to Washington State?
No. While the tax burden falls on the consumer purchasing the advertising placements, the responsibility to collect and remit these taxes is passed to us at the Ads Platform since we must align the tax with the actual dollars spent advertising within Washington State. No portion of the tax is retained by us; we are merely the reporting and collection cog in this process.
I'm an Agency Partner. Can I pass the tax charge through to my end client?
While we can't provide tax or legal advice, we do recommend that you consult with competent local counsel to advise on if you can pass through any portion of this collected tax to your end client through separate billings. Regardless of that determination, we must still collect the full tax amount directly from you when launching any ad campaign that targets Washington State.
I'm a tax-exempt non-profit. How can I get the Washington State sales tax waived?
In Washington, nonprofit organizations are generally taxed like any other business and will not qualify for a waiver. They must pay sales tax on all goods and 'retail services' they purchase as consumers...and advertising is considered a 'retail service' in Washington for this purpose.
Importantly, an IRS tax exempt letter does not apply to Washington State sales tax; they have their own application and approval process that must be pursued separately.
However, if you believe you qualify for a sales tax waiver, please reach out to our Billing Support team through the Ads Platform support portal to request a review of your specific situation. We'll be happy to take a closer look.
I have more questions, who can I reach out to?
You can reach out to our Billing Support team anytime via the Ads Platform support portal or via the chat widget in the bottom left corner of the Ads Platform.