CDTFA-401-A2: California sales and use tax return
CDTFAFiled electronicallyLast checked September 29, 2026
Every California winegrower needs a seller's permit and files sales and use tax returns, so you charge California sales tax on the wine you ship to California consumers. District taxes are computed on the return's Schedule A2, so there is no separate district filing. ca-14 ca-04 ca-22
When it's due
| Your filing frequency | Due |
|---|---|
| Monthly | The last day of the following month |
| Quarterly | Apr 30, Jul 31, Oct 31, Jan 31 |
| Quarterly prepay | The quarterly dates, plus prepayments on Feb 24, Mar 24, May 24, Jun 24, Aug 24, Sep 24, Nov 24 and Dec 24 |
| Yearly | Jan 31 |
| Fiscal yearly | Jul 31 |
The CDTFA assigns your frequency from your reported or anticipated taxable sales; check yours in CDTFA Online Services. A due date on a weekend or state holiday moves to the next business day. ca-23 ca-40
District tax on Schedule A2
Sales tax starts at the statewide base rate of 7.25%. Local district taxes are computed on Schedule A2 (CDTFA-531-A2), which starts from the taxable sales on your return and carries its total back to it. ca-04 ca-22
Which district rates you owe depends on where you are engaged in business. Since April 25, 2019, a retailer whose combined California sales exceed $500,000 in the current or preceding calendar year is engaged in business in every district, and collects each delivery address's district tax. Below that line, you owe district tax only where you are engaged in business, starting with your own district. ca-04
Rate each delivery by its street address, using the CDTFA's rate lookup, not by its ZIP code. ca-04
Shipping charges
The shipping you charge a California customer is not taxable when you ship directly to the customer by common carrier, contract carrier or U.S. Mail, list the charge separately on the invoice, and charge no more than your actual delivery cost. Any part of the charge above your actual cost is taxable, and so, generally, are handling charges and deliveries in your own vehicles. ca-44 ca-45
Keep your sales and use tax records for at least four years, and among them proof of what each delivery actually cost you: without it, the shipping you charge is taxable. ca-46 ca-44
How Pinrates handles it
Filed electronically by Pinrates.
- Built from your sales. Pinrates builds the return as sales come in, direct-to-consumer and wholesale. Every line traces back to the sales behind it: wholesale is deducted with each buyer's license on file, and the district tax schedule (Schedule A2) comes from each delivery address.
- Reviewed on one screen. You see each line beside the draft it came from, and the whole return laid out as CDTFA's own form.
- Paid with the return. CDTFA debits your bank account on the day you choose, up to the due date. There is nothing to pay at CDTFA's site.
- Filed when you click File. Confirm, and CDTFA's answer comes straight back: the confirmation number is recorded on the return, and the filed copy is kept with it.
← Filings
California sales and use tax (CDTFA-401-A)
Hollow Oak Cellars · CDTFA-401-A2 · Q3 2026 · due Oct 31, 2026 · files with CDTFA by Direct Transmit
The return
| Draft | Filed with CDTFA | |
|---|---|---|
| Line 1: Total sales | $412,860.37 | $412,860.00 |
| Line 4: Sales for resale (wholesale) | $18,240.00 | $18,240.00 |
| Line 8: Sales shipped out of California | $236,415.12 | $236,415.00 |
| Line 11: Total nontaxable transactions | $254,655.00 | |
| Line 12: Transactions subject to tax | $158,205.25 | $158,205.00 |
| Line 13: State tax (6%) | $9,492.00 | |
| Line 14: County tax (0.25%) | $396.00 | |
| Line 15: Local tax (1%) | $1,582.00 | |
| Line 16: District tax (Schedule A2) | $1,604.00 | |
| Line 17: Total tax | $13,074.26 | $13,074.00 |
| Line 18: Excess tax collected | $12.40 | $12.00 |
| Amount due | $13,086.66 | $13,086.00 |
Schedule A2: $134,339.00 across 31 district areas, $23,866.00 at the state rate only, district tax $1,604.00.
See the orders →The return as CDTFA's form (PDF) ↗
Payment
CDTFA debits $13,086.00 from checking ****4417 (Hollow Oak Cellars LLC) on Friday, October 30. Authorized by Dana Ruiz. There is nothing to pay at CDTFA's site.
Debit on 10/30/2026 Any banking day up to the due date: CDTFA refuses a date after it.
File
Try the File button: Hollow Oak Cellars is a fictional example account, and nothing is sent.
Pinrates is a CDTFA-certified Direct Transmitter for California sales and use tax returns (CDTFA-401-A2). Certification means we showed in CDTFA's testing that we transmit return data correctly; it is not an endorsement by CDTFA.
The CDTFA-401-A2 in Pinrates
Pinrates prepares the CDTFA-401-A2 from your orders and files it electronically, on the Prepare plan at $299 a month.
Sources
Every source this page cites, from the California chapter of Direct to Consumer, State by State, last checked September 29, 2026. Each key opens the same page as the short link printed in the book. Any change since then is posted on the California page.
Cited on this page
| Key | What it is | Form / cite | Agency |
|---|---|---|---|
| ca-37 | Sales and use tax return with district tax | CDTFA-401, Schedule A | CDTFA |
| ca-14 | Tax account after ABC licensing | CDTFA, "Alcoholic Beverage Tax: Getting Started" | CDTFA |
| ca-04 | CDTFA, Local and District Tax Guide for Retailers | CDTFA | |
| ca-22 | Lines tie to the CDTFA-401 return | CDTFA, Form CDTFA-531-A2, Schedule A2, Computation Schedule for District Tax, with instructions | CDTFA |
| ca-23 | CDTFA, "Sales and Use Tax Returns: Filing Frequencies and Due Dates" | CDTFA | |
| ca-40 | File and pay sales tax and winegrower tax returns | CDTFA Online Services | CDTFA |
| ca-44 | When delivery, handling and combined charges are taxable | CDTFA, Publication 100, Shipping and Delivery Charges, "Applying Sales Tax" | CDTFA |
| ca-45 | Sales and Use Tax Regulation 1628, transportation charges | Cal. Code Regs. tit. 18, § 1628 | |
| ca-46 | Sales and Use Tax Regulation 1698, records kept at least four years | Cal. Code Regs. tit. 18, § 1698(i) |
This page is a reference, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with the state before acting on them.
Everything California asks a winery to file, and how Pinrates handles each return, is on the California page. Also for California wineries: CDTFA-501-WG (California winegrower tax return).
The California chapter is one of 51 in Direct to Consumer, State by State. Get the free digital edition.