Businesses participating in a special event in Rio Blanco County must have a Colorado Department of Revenue Special Event License.

  • Rio Blanco County does not issue a separate license for special events
  • Special event sales should not be included on the business's regular sales tax remittance
  • Business participating in special events within a Town or City should contact the municipality for licensing requirements.

As the event organizer, you must contact the Department of Revenue or Rio Blanco County Sales & Use Tax to provide the location and dates of the event and a list of vendors.

The Colorado Department of Revenue offers convenient online services for special events. You can:

  • apply for a special event license
  • input all the sales information and
  • have the system automatically calculate taxes due after the event. 

If you have not attended an event yet and do not have a license, please download and submit the DR 0589 Special Event Application  along with any fees to the Department of Revenue.

If you've already attended your event, go to RevenueOnline and follow the steps to file your return.

A special or multiple event license is for vendors that:

  • have mobile activity only (or in addition to a retail location) and travel to different jurisdictions to do retail sales
  • sell at only a limited number of events per year

Special/Multiple Event licenses serve several functions: *fictional examples- may not represent correct rates*

  • They allow the correct jurisdiction to receive the local sales tax.
    Example: Joe sells knives. He has a store in Grand Junction, CO, but he also operates a booth for an event in Rio Blanco County. Joe files his regular 7.65% sales tax return monthly for his sales from the store in Grand Junction (2.9% CO State sales tax and 4.75% Grand Junction and Mesa County sales tax). When he sells from his booth in Rio Blanco County, he collects 6.5% sales tax (2.9% CO State sales tax and 3.6% Rio Blanco County sales tax). He then remits this on a special event return so the 3.6% local sales tax goes to the correct jurisdiction (Rio Blanco County). This is the only event that Joe does all year.

  • They allow organizers to track retail sales from a specific event.
    Example: Lori sells blankets. She has a store in Meeker, CO, but sells at different locations around the state and within her jurisdiction. She has a booth at the local fair every year. She collects the same 6.5% sales tax as she does at her store (they are in the same jurisdiction) but she remits her tax on a multiple event return so the sales tax from the event can be kept separate from her store sales. She also sells at the Mesa County fair and remits that sales tax on a multiple event return. She sells at different events more than once a year. 
  • They allow people who do not have a business location to sell a limited number of times per year without having to possess a standard sales tax license. The special event license fee is $8 for each event and the multiple event license fee is $16 for two years. For vendors holding a sales tax license, there is no fee. More information can be found at the Colorado Department of Revenue.

Any entity that has a sales tax license and makes sales at events must have a separate special/ multiple events license, complete a separate application, and remit the tax on a separate return. Vendors are always advised to contact all appropriate jurisdictions before events to understand specific rates, rules, regulations, and licensing requirements.