If you buy something over the phone from another state, are they supposed to collect sales tax. It's a business that has no branch and no physical presence in Maryland, and probably not in any state other than Wisconsin. Shipped to Maryland where I live.
Most likely you will have to pay Maryland sales tax. Drive here to DE for tax free shopping.
I think Amazon set up ware houses here as states like CA would make them also pay their sale's tax even though shipped to another state.
I think the rules on tax have changed in the last few years. It may depend on the state or the state you are in.
In NC where I live you were suppose to declare the sales tax bought out of state and shipped in at the end of the year on your income tax if they did not have a store in the state.
I think now some companies are collecting the state tax and are suppose to be sending it to your state.
If they were going to do that, shouldn't the sales tax have been itemized on the receipt?
The tax is actually the smallest part of it. It must be the shipping charge that was exorbitant but they didn't itemize anything on the receipt. I have to write them. Maybe they made a typo.
Many states require out of state vedors to collect the tax for them. Little guys can get away but they certainly go after the big houses.
Of course, it they don't collect the tax you are obligated to report and pay it anyway.
If they are registered to "fo business in" a state they collect the tax for that state. If not they collect tax for the state they are doing business in - in this case Wisconsin.
bring it home to Maryland, who gets the tax? Do you get a refund of wisconsin tax and submit tax to maryland???
Laws vary by state.
I don't know about Maryland, but we've got a line on our MI-1040 that deals with these sorts of sales. If the seller didn't collect and forward to Michigan the 6% state sales tax, we are required to pay it. We can save our receipts or use a small percentage of our income as an estimate of how much sales tax we owe.
You should investigate the situation in Maryland more closely, and not by asking random people on Usenet.
Cindy Hamilton
FWIW, I tried to use their webpage where taxes are usually itemized. I put the item in the shopping cart, and I registered, but when I tried to check out, it didnt' recognize my userid/password. That's when it said my registration was waiting approval**. When it wasn't approved by the following day, I called, to urge them to approve it, but instead he took the order over the phone. The email came, the package came, but I still don't know if or how much he charged for sales tax. He said nothing about sales tax or shipping method or charge.
But I learned here that it varies.
Technically, you get credit for the tax of the other state and pay the difference if you state is higher. Doubt anyone does that on a regular basis.
This state doesn't have a sales tax so that simplifies matters. I haven't had a reason to go to Spokane in years but it used to be if you went to REI or some other business if you showed a Montana license they wouldn't charge the WA tax. I'm sure Washington residents buying big ticket items in Montana dutifully pay the taxes.
Are we talking about the law or what people do? As a general rule, if the merchant doesn't collect the tax, it never gets paid and being a skeptical person, I wonder if some of the small operators collect the tax and pocket some or all of it on out of state sales. Florida did just pass a law tightening up their tax rules but it is unclear how they enforce it. Also here, we do not file state income tax forms so I am not sure how I would pay the tax anyway if the merchant did not collect it. I suppose they would take the money if I sent it to them tho.
The reality is I am seeing more places collecting the tax, even small operators like Ebay stores. Amazon always has at least for the last 5 years or so that I have been using them.
It varies by state, but Calif requires tax to be paid from the location where the product is physically received, not where it is sold.
A seller in one state is not required to tax buyers from another state unless the seller's state has a reciprocating tax agreement with the buyer's state.
If that's what happened, that's a sign that you're dealing with shysters.
It's not that the small Ebay stores that changed, it's that Ebay started collecting it for most states now. BTW, the Ebay move away from using Paypal to process their transactions, that I first learned about here, hit me about a month ago. No heads up, no warning, nothing until two weeks before. Then it was just a message that you're being switched in two weeks. Instead of PP, they are using some company in Europe to do it. It works, but it's made it more confusing and Ebay was lying when they said it would benefit most sellers by taking less out. From what I've seen it's the same or just a tad less, which of course is what I expected knowing those bastards.
I just bought a $350 pool cleaner from Ebay and paid with Paypal.
I have bought several items from ebayranging from $ 10 to $ 120. Some new and some like a refurbished computer. Tax was added to every item. I did use PayPal for all of them. I bougth a $ 15 item from China and I don't think PP added tax to that one.
The tax is added by the seller, not PayPal. Generally if you buy from a private seller - say a used object, no tax is charged or paid - by the letter of the law YOU are supposed to remit the tax but I've never seen it done. If I buy something from Texas or Florida or wherever I generally pay the texas or florida tax if I buy it there - no tax if it is shipped directly to me in Ontario. If it gets snagged by customs I will be assessed the tax on items with a value threshold - used to be $25 but I think it has gone up. If handled by USPS / Canada post there was a $5 filing charge. If shipped by UPS with a $50 value I got dinged the tax PLUS UPS criminal brokerage fees - which combined had the possibility of DOUBLING the cost of the item. Having it shipped UPS Expidited (air), with the brokerage paid by the shipper and added to the bill was always significantly cheaper - and faster - but I avoid UPS like the plague - - even within Canada
Yeah, that certainly makes sense but they've been in business for 63 years and google rates them 4.9 out of 5 on 15 ratings (10 of them with comments). I'll post their name after I write to them today.
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