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Do carpet cleaners charge sales tax in Nebraska?

What Nebraska's Department of Revenue says about sales tax on carpet and furniture cleaning, permits, supplies, invoices and local rates, with links to the official sources.

Updated November 5, 2026 · 6 min read · By CarpetOS

If you clean carpets in Nebraska, you have probably wondered whether your invoices should carry sales tax, or had a customer ask why they do. The Nebraska Department of Revenue's published guidance gives a direct answer: carpet cleaning is on its list of taxable building cleaning services.

This guide walks through what that guidance says is taxable, the permit you need, tax on the supplies you buy, how tax should appear on invoices and where to look up the right rate. It explains the official sources in plain language. It is not tax advice, so confirm anything that affects your business with the Department or a tax professional.

What Nebraska's guidance says is taxable

The main document is the Department's notice If you are engaged in building cleaning and maintenance, Information Guide 6-401. It says that since October 1, 2002, businesses providing these services are retailers and "the gross receipts (charges) from providing building cleaning and maintenance services are subject to sales tax."

Its list of taxable examples includes "Carpet, floor, appliance or furniture cleaning," as well as "Smoke odor counteracting" and "Water removal (flood or fire damage)." The services cover "interior and exterior cleaning of commercial and residential buildings, homes, apartments, outbuildings, and agricultural buildings," so the guide covers homes as well as commercial buildings.

Nebraska's regulation on these services, Reg-1-098, adds that they include "Cleaning and maintenance of tangible personal property located in a building." Neither document names upholstery or area rugs specifically, and neither addresses rugs you take back to your own shop or plant to clean. If you do in-plant rug cleaning, ask the Department how those charges should be treated.

The guide also says the total amount a property management company pays you for cleaning is taxable and that "The sale of building cleaning and maintenance service contracts are taxable." If you sell plans that cover future cleanings, read that rule closely.

A note on dates: the guide is dated January 9, 2013 and supersedes a 2003 notice. The Department's list of sales and use tax information guides still lists it as "Building Cleaning and Maintenance (09/2003 - contains information updated 01/2013)" and showed no newer revision in November 2026. Because it is over a decade old, check the Department's sales and use tax page for updates.

Getting a sales tax permit

Guide 6-401 says retailers providing these services "must hold a Nebraska sales and use tax permit and collect the Nebraska and applicable local (city) sales tax on charges for these services performed in Nebraska."

The Department's starting a business page says you can register online or file a Nebraska Tax Application, Form 20, and if you indicate you will be collecting sales tax, "you will be issued a Sales Tax Permit." The same page says the permit does not need renewing, that you will file "monthly, quarterly, or annually, based on the amount of state sales tax collected," and that returns "are due the 20th of the month."

The Department's Nebraska and Local Sales Tax information guide (revised October 2008) says collected tax is reported on Form 10 and that "The tax collected by retailers is a trust fund that belongs to the State of Nebraska." It recommends keeping collected tax in a separate account.

Tax on the supplies and equipment you buy

The Department's FAQ on sales tax for certain services answers "Can I buy my cleaning supplies tax free?" with "No," because you are "the consumer of all supplies used in providing your cleaning and maintenance services and must pay sales or use tax on all purchases of materials, supplies and equipment used to provide your service."

So under this guidance you collect tax on your cleaning charges and also pay tax on the chemicals, equipment and supplies you use to do the work.

If a supplier does not charge Nebraska tax, the obligation doesn't go away. The Nebraska and Local Sales Tax guide says that when buyers "have not paid Nebraska and applicable local sales tax when making purchases for their own use, the buyer owes Nebraska and applicable local consumer's use tax."

Showing sales tax on your invoices

Nebraska's Reg-1-039 says "The retailer must collect the tax as an item separate and distinct from the selling price." The same regulation lists advertising statements retailers cannot use, including "Pay no sales tax" and "We will pay your sales tax," so leave tax-themed promotions out of your marketing.

The FAQ also shows why itemizing matters on jobs that mix different kinds of work. In its building cleaning section, it explains that when an inspector itemizes inspection and cleaning charges, only the cleaning is taxable, but "If one amount is charged to both inspect and clean the HVAC system, the entire charge is taxable." If a job includes anything you believe is not taxable, list it separately and confirm its treatment with the Department or a tax professional.

When a customer claims an exemption, the Nebraska and Local Sales Tax guide says "retailers must obtain a properly completed Nebraska Resale or Exempt Sale Certificate for Sales Tax Exemption, Form 13, from the buyer." Reg-1-008 requires every retailer to keep "records necessary to determine the amount of tax due," including exempt sale certificates.

Checking state and local rates

When this guide was written in November 2026, the Department's sales and use tax page stated: "The Nebraska state sales and use tax rate is 5.5% (.055)." Local rates are added on top, and guide 6-401 says local tax "must be collected at the rate in effect at the location where the building cleaning and maintenance service is provided." For on-site work, that is where the job is done, not where your shop is.

To find the rate for a job, use the Department's Sales Tax Rate Finder, which the Department says shows rates "by street level address." The Local Sales and Use Tax Rates page lists jurisdictions by calendar quarter.

Local rates can change at the start of a calendar quarter. For example, the Department's sales and use tax page says that for the quarter beginning January 1, 2027, the village of Winside will start a 1% local rate, and Eagle and Hay Springs will increase from 1% to 1.5%. Check the Department's notices each quarter for the towns you serve.

When to call the Department or a tax professional

The published guidance doesn't settle every situation. Get an answer from the Department or a tax professional before you set your invoicing for:

  • Rugs or other items you clean away from the customer's building.
  • Fire and flood jobs that include repairs. The FAQ says cleaning a building "and its contents after a fire, flood, or similar disaster" is taxable, but "Labor charges to repair or replace part or all of the building are not taxable," and Reg-1-098 points repairs to fixtures to the contractor rules.
  • Customers who say they are exempt but can't give you a completed Form 13.
  • Jobs outside Nebraska. The Department's sales and use tax page notes you "may have an obligation to collect and remit those states' sales taxes."

Nebraska Taxpayer Assistance is listed at 800-742-7474 (NE and IA) or 402-471-5729.

Quick checklist

  • Confirm you hold a Nebraska sales tax permit before invoicing taxable cleaning.
  • Note that guide 6-401 lists carpet and furniture cleaning as taxable for homes and businesses alike.
  • Budget for sales or use tax on your own supplies and equipment, as the FAQ describes.
  • Show sales tax as a separate line, and itemize mixed jobs.
  • Look up the rate at the customer's address with the Rate Finder.
  • Keep Form 13 certificates for any exempt customer.
  • Check the Department's rate notices every quarter, and take open questions to the Department or a tax professional.

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change, so check the linked sources and talk to a professional about your situation.

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