Quote:
Originally Posted by cgjackson222
So I know the tax code changed a couple of years ago for internet sales, which leads to more sales tax collected.
But I am confused as to why a lot of the larger AHs charge sales tax in more states than some of the smaller ones that only charge in the state they are located and maybe a few others.
Does it have to do with volume of sales to each state or something?
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Yes, in 2018 the SCOTUS upheld South Dakota against Wayfair and determined that a seller no longer had to have a physical presence (inventory, employees, store, etc.) before SD could legally force that seller to collect and remit sales taxes on sales to customers in SD. The SCOTUS agreed with SD's threshold for out-of-state sellers to have to start collecting SD sales tax once they reached $100,000 of gross taxable sales in a single calendar year, or had 200 or more taxable sales transactions to SD customers, also in a single calendar year. Once that happened, other states with sales taxes started changing their sales tax laws to be more in line with what the SCOTUS approved in SD.
So of course, larger AHs and sellers will more easily reach whatever the revised annual sales and/or transaction thresholds are in all those other states (and SD) than will smaller AHs and sellers that don't have as much sales or transaction volume.
So all these AHs and sellers now have to keep track of their gross taxable sales and the number of sales transactions they have each year on a state by state basis, so they can tell when they might finally reach and go over a particular state's sales tax thresholds. And once they've crossed over one of a particular state's thresholds, generally they are then legally required to register with whatever group or department oversees sales taxes in that particular state, and to then start charging, collecting, and remitting sales taxes on all taxable sales to customers in that particular state going forward. And once a seller/AH has to start collecting sales tax in a particular state, they don't generally get to stop being liable for collecting it in subsequent years should their gross taxable sales and transaction volume fall below the thresholds.
The smaller AHs and sellers are always going to be required to collect sales taxes in states they are located in because they have an actual physical presence in those states.