Delaware penny rounding law
No rounding law or guidance found. Delaware has no sales tax, so rounding is purely a store pricing policy.
Short answer. Delaware has no cash rounding law or official guidance. Rounding is a store policy, and because Delaware has no sales tax, there is no sales tax calculation for rounding to disturb.
Delaware cash rounding calculator
Enter a cash total, or item prices plus your sales tax rate. The result updates as you type.
Delaware law and bills
We did not find a Delaware rounding bill in the 153rd General Assembly, whose 2026 session ended June 30, 2026, and we found no Department of Justice or Division of Revenue guidance on rounding. The General Assembly’s bill search could not be fully checked from our end; if a bill appears, it will be listed in the tracker.
Can a Delaware store round cash totals?
Yes, as store policy. Rounding a total down is a discount. Rounding totals up without telling customers could draw complaints under Delaware’s Consumer Fraud Act, so a posted sign and symmetric rounding are the safe approach. We found no Delaware law requiring businesses to accept cash.
Federal law
There is no federal rounding rule in force either. The Common Cents Act (H.R. 10167) passed Congress on September 28, 2026, but as of October 31, 2026 we found no record of it being signed. If enacted, it would let sellers in Delaware round cash totals symmetrically to the nearest 5¢ without requiring anyone to round, keep pennies legal tender, and protect sellers that follow its method from conflicting state or local rules. Federal status of the penny.
Your options as a customer
- Pay by card, debit, EBT or app. Those payments are charged the exact amount; rounding only ever touches cash.
- Pay with exact change. Pennies are still legal tender (31 U.S.C. § 5103). The Federal Reserve notes, though, that no federal law makes a private business accept cash or coins. We found no Delaware law that changes that, so a store sets its own payment policy. Federal Reserve FAQ.
- Check the receipt. It should show the exact total and a separate rounding line, so you can see which way it went.
- Report a problem. If a store rounds every cash total up without telling customers, contact the Delaware Department of Justice, Consumer Protection Unit. See also is it legal for a store to round up?
Sales tax
Delaware has no sales tax, so a Delaware receipt has no sales tax line to compute before rounding. Sellers instead pay a gross receipts tax on their total receipts, at rates of roughly 0.09% to 1.99% depending on the business; ask a tax adviser how to treat rounding differences for that tax. More on sales tax and cash rounding.
SNAP, EBT and card payments
SNAP and WIC benefits are paid electronically, so the EBT part of any purchase in Delaware is always charged to the exact cent. Federal rules require stores to treat SNAP shoppers the same as other customers, so a store that rounds the cash part of a split payment should use the same rule for everyone. SNAP/EBT, cards and refunds.
Stores and local news in Delaware
Several chains with Delaware stores have published policies: Harris Teeter rounds cash in the customer’s favor, and ShopRite uses nearest-nickel rounding. See all store policies.
Rules in neighboring states
Shopping across the line? Rounding rules change at the border.
| State | Status | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Maryland | Law in effect | Optional symmetric rounding of the price or the change (not both); prices under 5¢ may round up to 5¢. Up to 2¢ of rounding is excluded from taxable price. |
| Pennsylvania | Bill pending | HB 2388 (Pennsylvania Common Cents Act) passed the House 187-15 in June 2026 and sits in Senate Finance. It would require symmetric rounding of in-person cash totals. |
| New Jersey | Agency guidance only | No statute. Taxation and Consumer Affairs: rounding is voluntary, applies to the final cash total, must be disclosed, and does not change sales tax. A5233 passed the Assembly. |