What the Tax????!!!!!

JollyElm · #1 10-01-2019, 04:03 PM

I know this topic has been covered in different ways before, but this seems like a brand new development. In looking around to try to find cards to spend my ebay bucks on in a couple of days, I decided to start piling things into my cart to see which would have taxes added to the total. Well, in short, it didn't matter what state the item came from, I was getting hammered with taxes right across the board. I didn't put cards from all 50 states into my cart, but every single state I looked at (perhaps 10 different?) had taxes added on. I know the usual people will jump in to chime, "You are always supposed to pay a use tax!" (or whatever), but what I want to know is did ebay start adding taxes to all purchases??? I bought 4 or 5 things this past week and none had taxes attached. It is now October first, so am I right to assume that has something to do with it??? God, that new fee will basically wipe out the entirety of my ebay bucks, so I won't be getting a bargain in any way, shape or form. Ugh.

BabyRuth · #2 10-01-2019, 04:12 PM

Fee-bay is no longer the wild west anymore. The money grab for Massachusetts started today - I won a card for $660 last night on ebay and had a nice $42 sales tax addition!!!

Jason · #3 10-01-2019, 04:14 PM

Sellers, at least on the very small level I do from time to time have the option to choice not to collect tax. I am not sure what the ramifications are to that if any though.

ALR-bishop · #4 10-01-2019, 04:29 PM

I think almost all states have now updated their laws to take advantage of last year's South Dakota v Wayfair decision allowing them to apply sales taxes to catalog and on line out of state retailers and sellers. Texas passed the legislation effective 10-1 this year. I think I read that of the states with sales taxes only Florida and Missouri have not updated their laws. So I assume sales taxes will now apply to almost all eBay purchases. Others may have better info.

swarmee · #5 10-01-2019, 04:37 PM

It depends on the state *YOU* live in, not which state the seller is in. So if your state recently became a use-tax collecting state, you're paying the tax, no matter where the seller is. Why do you think Brent spent so much money to build vaults in a state with no sales tax?

rats60 · #6 10-01-2019, 04:49 PM

I got an email from ebay today. They are up to 34 states that they are collecting taxes for.

Scott L. · #7 10-01-2019, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by swarmee

It depends on the state *YOU* live in, not which state the seller is in. So if your state recently became a use-tax collecting state, you're paying the tax, no matter where the seller is. Why do you think Brent spent so much money to build vaults in a state with no sales tax?

This

bobbyw8469 · #8 10-02-2019, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BabyRuth

Fee-bay is no longer the wild west anymore. The money grab for Massachusetts started today - I won a card for $660 last night on ebay and had a nice $42 sales tax addition!!!

Not to beat a dead horse, but wasn't the taxes on these cards already paid when they were manufactured in 1962 or whatever? So basically, every time an item is sold, it will be taxed, no matter how many times it's sold?

samosa4u · #9 10-02-2019, 09:09 AM

I'm pretty sure we all could list a hundred different reasons why this is bad. However, something positive will come out of this as well: first of all, we have all become like robots. Click-click-click - send message - click - send offer - click accept - click-click-click print shipping label. Some folks are too afraid to speak with me over the phone! People have become so comfortable in their own quiet digital world. Now this whole thing is going to make people get off their butts and pick up that phone. There will also be more coffee shop meetings, lunch meetings, and more transactions will be taking place in card shows. And finally, the BST board here (and all the other forums) will get better.

Peter_Spaeth · #10 10-02-2019, 09:19 AM

Who will ultimately pay for it is an open question. Will collectors just fork over more, or will they pay less calculating it as part of the final price like a buyer's premium? I certainly know dealers who worry it will suppress prices.

I just got an email from a merchant essentially saying they will make the customer whole for the tax. Of course, they may surreptitiously raise prices to offset their loss.

Dear Customer,

Everybody likes to save money! I am excited to share B&H’s new way to save you money.

Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that out-of-state retailers must collect sales tax on online sales. As a result, on October 4th, B&H will start collecting tax on shipments to Massachusetts, as required by state law. We have been working hard to develop a solution to eliminate the impact of this ruling on our customers.

Our solution is named Payboo! When you use the new B&H Payboo Credit Card*, you can save the equivalent of the tax — you pay the tax, and we pay you back instantly! Make any purchase at B&H with Payboo, and you will receive an instant reward equal to the sales tax you paid. And at B&H, instant means instant — no expiring points, credits, or coupons to worry about. It’s that simple. (B&H collects and remits state sales tax in accordance with state laws, so all required tax is collected and paid, and B&H issues the instant savings credit to you.)

Payboo is an exciting store credit card with, we believe, the most valuable benefit in the industry — the instant credit equal to the sales tax. As long as you pay your bill on time, you will not incur any interest or other costs. I invite you to apply today at www.BandH.com/payboo.

I know you have many choices where to buy creative tech gear, and I truly appreciate your business. With Payboo, I believe B&H will become an even clearer choice for all your technology needs.

I look forward to a continued great business relationship. Please remember, at B&H the customer always comes first. That’s why we’ve created Payboo to eliminate the impact of sales tax for you.

Please visit us today and start saving!

Thank you,

x2drich2000 · #11 10-02-2019, 10:31 AM

And why do you think a merchant would be willing to offer you such a tax reimbursement incentive attached to a credit card? I think we both know the answer has something to do with spending more and not paying the account in full right away.

Case12 · #12 10-02-2019, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by samosa4u

I'm pretty sure we all could list a hundred different reasons why this is bad. However, something positive will come out of this as well: first of all, we have all become like robots. Click-click-click - send message - click - send offer - click accept - click-click-click print shipping label. Some folks are too afraid to speak with me over the phone! People have become so comfortable in their own quiet digital world. Now this whole thing is going to make people get off their butts and pick up that phone. There will also be more coffee shop meetings, lunch meetings, and more transactions will be taking place in card shows. And finally, the BST board here (and all the other forums) will get better.

Definitely miss pre-ebay days. Shows at malls, local town hall, and sports dealer shops. Days when you could hang around and talk baseball.

jfkheat · #13 10-02-2019, 10:37 PM

Is it legal for eBay to tax shipping fees? I thought services couldn't be taxed.
James

birdman42 · #14 10-01-2019, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JollyElm

It is now October first, so am I right to assume that has something to do with it???

You are correct, Darren. Quite a few states passed legislation in their spring sessions that took effect today (10/1). A few others updated their sales and use tax regulations to reflect Wayfair. A couple (sorry, I don't have the details in front of me) failed to include de minimis clauses, so all remote sales in those states are supposed to have tax collected.

Here in MD, the law addresses "marketplace facilitators" (e.g., eBay, Etsy), allowing them to collect and remit the sales tax on behalf of the seller.

Bill

Qcards · #15 10-02-2019, 04:52 AM

I was surprised to find out yesterday that items I am selling from Canada into the U.S. have sales tax applied as well depending on the state.

I read the fine print and eBay states that it doesn't matter where in the world that the item is coming from, it matters what state it is being sold into.

The tax shows on my invoice but I will not receive it, eBay or Paypal will deduct it from my payment and send to the appropriate state.

familytoad · #16 10-09-2019, 04:57 PM

Complaining about paying taxes is 243 years too late.
But complaints about how the tax payments are used is timeless.

sb1 · #17 10-09-2019, 05:13 PM

Ebay sent out the sales tax email in conjunction with Paypal in regards to the new states taxable as of Oct. 1. In the email it said that ebay and paypal would handle the tax and the seller would have to do nothing.

My question is this...... If you are paying for an item on the BST or anywhere else(not ebay) and using regular paypal (not-F/F), is that transanction now going to be taxed by paypal as a business transaction, tax collected and forwarded to the applicable state.

I believe the answer is yes, but have had no dealing either as a buyer or seller this month to test the theory. I have a feeling paypal is going to track the 30 odd states that enacted the law and tax those transactions automatically as well(some vendors had added tax prior).

Further to add, perhaps only the buyer will see it and the seller won't be able to as they don't pay it, ebay/paypal does.

??

tschock · #18 10-09-2019, 05:28 PM

Also....

Isn't ebay over collecting the taxes? If I sell to someone in South Dakota, ebay will collect the sales tax. But if I don't make 200 sales or sell over $100K to South Dakota, does ebay reimburse that/those buyers? I highly doubt it. Or is ebay considered the 'vendor' in this case? Inquiring minds want to know.

CobbSpikedMe · #19 10-09-2019, 05:29 PM

How could Paypal know if the seller already charged sales tax on their own and the buyer is already paying it? That would be double taxation right?

tschock · #20 10-09-2019, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CobbSpikedMe

How could Paypal know if the seller already charged sales tax on their own and the buyer is already paying it? That would be double taxation right?

My 'guess' would be that ebay means they will request the total amount (including sales tax) to paypal and paypal will ensure the total (including sales tax) is deducted from the buyer's account. Paypal only 'knows' since that is the total requested by ebay. Otherwise, it's BAU from the paypal viewpoint.

CobbSpikedMe · #21 10-09-2019, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tschock

My 'guess' would be that ebay means they will request the total amount (including sales tax) to paypal and paypal will ensure the total (including sales tax) is deducted from the buyer's account. Paypal only 'knows' since that is the total requested by ebay. Otherwise, it's BAU from the paypal viewpoint.

Hi Taylor,

I meant when someone sells something off eBay (like on the BST) and the buyer uses PayPal to pay. If the seller charged sales tax then PayPal would have no idea it was included in the amount the buyer transfers.

CobbSpikedMe · #22 10-10-2019, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

Ebay sent out the sales tax email in conjunction with Paypal in regards to the new states taxable as of Oct. 1. In the email it said that ebay and paypal would handle the tax and the seller would have to do nothing.

My question is this...... If you are paying for an item on the BST or anywhere else(not ebay) and using regular paypal (not-F/F), is that transanction now going to be taxed by paypal as a business transaction, tax collected and forwarded to the applicable state.

I believe the answer is yes, but have had no dealing either as a buyer or seller this month to test the theory. I have a feeling paypal is going to track the 30 odd states that enacted the law and tax those transactions automatically as well(some vendors had added tax prior).

Further to add, perhaps only the buyer will see it and the seller won't be able to as they don't pay it, ebay/paypal does.

??

Taylor,

I was referencing Scott's post above regarding PayPal collecting tax on transactions that aren't PPFF like from the BST. That's where I think it could be a problem if they collected sales tax on all transactions.

sb1 · #23 10-10-2019, 04:55 PM

I can see how paypal could view every non-FF transaction as a taxable sale and apply the states sales tax to the $ amount. It is called goods and services...

tschock · #24 10-10-2019, 05:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

I can see how paypal could view every non-FF transaction as a taxable sale and apply the states sales tax to the $ amount. It is called goods and services...

A ) The assumption would have to be that any request coming directly from the owner of the paypal account that is not a PPFF request would not have already had tax applied to it.
B ) For example, if a small business that doesn't directly link their request to paypal, but accepts paypal funds and has already applied the tax to the invoice sent to me, then if paypal adheres to A above, they are doubly taxing the invoice.

We are all speculating here though on what paypal may or may not do.

I still have the question/concern though of ebay over collecting taxes if I truly am the vendor and haven't met that state's specific threshold of sales.