Maine Sales & Use Tax Exemption for Wound Closure Products

Agile Consulting Group's Recent Guidance

The pioneers at Agile Consulting Group submitted a formal Request for Advisory Ruling to Maine Revenue Services on August 12, 2025. The ruling request addressed the taxability of eight categories of wound care products, sutures, skin staples, skin staplers, skin closure devices, skin closure strips, non-medicated dressings, non-medicated bandages, and non-medicated gauze, under the prosthetic device exemption at 36 M.R.S. § 1760(5-A)(A). Maine Revenue Services responded on January 9, 2026, in a ruling signed by Judy A. Methot, Director of the Sales, Fuel & Special Tax Division. The Department confirmed that sutures, skin staples, and skin closure devices qualify for the exemption when sold to ambulatory surgical facilities, long-term acute care facilities, and skilled nursing facilities, as each item is introduced into or onto the human body as part of a medical procedure, worn in or on the body, and either prevents or corrects a physical deformity or malfunction or supports a weak or deformed portion of the body. However, the Department ruled that skin staplers, skin closure strips, non-medicated dressings, non-medicated bandages, and non-medicated gauze do not qualify as prosthetic or orthotic devices and remain generally subject to Maine sales and use tax. The Department noted that skin closure strips, unlike skin closure devices, are used only to close superficial wounds and do not provide the tensile support equivalent to staples or sutures. Healthcare providers should also be aware that if a qualifying prosthetic or orthotic device is withdrawn from inventory for the facility's own use, rather than transferred to a patient during a medical procedure, use tax liability accrues at the date of withdrawal under 36 M.R.S. § 1861.

Qualifying Wound Closure Products

Based on the Department's advisory ruling, the following wound closure products qualify for the Maine sales and use tax exemption when sold by means of a healthcare practitioner's order to a surgery center, long-term acute care facility, skilled nursing facility, or other non-exempt medical facility:

• Sutures
• Skin staples
• Skin closure devices

Products That Do Not Qualify

The Department's ruling made clear that the following products are not considered prosthetic or orthotic devices under Maine law and are generally subject to sales and use tax:

• Skin staplers
• Skin closure strips
• Non-medicated dressings
• Non-medicated bandages
• Non-medicated gauze

How to Claim the Maine Sales & Use Tax Exemption

To claim the Maine prosthetic device exemption on qualifying purchases, healthcare facilities should provide their supplier with a written exemption certificate referencing the applicable exemption under 36 M.R.S. § 1760(5-A)(A). The certificate should identify the purchasing facility, describe the qualifying products, and cite the statutory basis for the exemption. Facilities should retain copies of all exemption certificates and supporting documentation, including physician orders and product labeling demonstrating the prescription or order requirement, to substantiate the exemption in the event of an audit.

How to Recover Maine Sales Taxes Paid in Error to Vendors

Maine's lookback period for sales and use tax refund claims is three years from the date of the overpayment. Healthcare facilities that have been paying tax on qualifying wound closure products, sutures, skin staples, and skin closure devices, are eligible to recover those overpayments by filing an Application for Refund of Sales or Use Tax with Maine Revenue Services. To support a refund claim, facilities should gather purchase invoices identifying the taxed items, proof of tax payment, documentation confirming that items were sold pursuant to a licensed practitioner's order, and product labeling or package inserts demonstrating compliance with the prosthetic device definition. Given the nuances in this ruling, particularly the distinction between qualifying skin closure devices and non-qualifying skin closure strips, we strongly recommend a thorough line-item review of purchase history before filing.

Reach Out to Us with Questions

If you have any questions, comments or would like to discuss the specific circumstances you are encountering in regard to this issue or need assistance with a sales tax refund review or any other sales and use tax issue, please contact a member of Agile Consulting Group's sales tax consulting team at (888) 350-4TAX (4829) or via email at info@salesandusetax.com.