About Added Sales Tax

[sylviebee]

I don't normally send invoices but this morning I started to do so and noticed that there is an added Sales Tax on an item I sold to the States.

Is this something new or has it been going on for a while?

Is this just for items sent from outside the US or are American's getting this tax added on even when they buy from the inside the States?

Does this apply all sites or only to eBay?

This sucks and it's bound to hurt business.  😞

[ypdc_dennis]

Sellers should expect another bump in buyers complaining about sales tax, as another 13 USA states get added to the eBay sales tax collection program on July 1, 2019.  Followed by 5 more states come October.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/taxes-import-charges?id=4121#section4

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[lotzofuniquegoodies]

@ypdc_dennis 

Curious to know what a customer sees when they receive an invoice that includes any of those unique by state taxes. Does it just say "Tax" and an amount? It would be much more helpful if it explained it as a State Tax with the specific % as a line item. Similar to when you go to a Bricks and Morter store and it shows the taxes/delivery if applicable as separate line items with your receipt. Would make this whole mess much more transparent.

-Lotz 

eBay Cash Register:

[hlmacdon]

It states tax and the applicable amount based on their ship to address. In shopping cart screens it shows Estimated Tax. IMHO it doesn't really need to be explained and disclaimed as a state tax, buyers know what this is and those that pretend they don't are just curmudgeons of the don't tread on my everything should be tax free philosophy types that will just pester you with a million different ways to get a reduced price. Most mid to large size ecom sites in the US have moved towards implementing this so there is general awareness beyond the marketplaces, and tens of millions of Amazon customers live with the same implementation daily and judging by their astronomical growth rate it hasn't hampered things.

The most vocal people I've seen about this issue tend to be hobbyist sellers playing the retail and tax arbitrage game to try and game a price advantage. The silver lining that should be looked at is based on how this is implemented as it effects sellers in China (and anywhere else for that matter) equally when they are using any large platform, so it avoids an unequal playing field in that respect. 

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

@hlmacdon 

My main comment is if it's clearly expressed officially for the casual eBay shopper then there is no finger pointing after the fact? In the past, I have seen "Explanation Messages" that appear on dot com listings but go to the listing on dot ca and nada. Should be the same with ALL platforms.

I definitely agree regarding leveling the playing field with those offshore sellers. If/how it is being applied, is anyone's guess though?

-Lotz

[recped]

Depending on where I view the listing and if I'm logged in with with my Canadian id or my US id I see a variety of messages about taxes, as far as I'm concerned this is much ado about nothing, I've charged GST/HST since day one and in all that time I've only had one person question it (they didn't have a clue what they were talking about).

Since eBay started collecting sales taxes for some States (and Australia) I've shipped quite a few (+/- 20?) orders to States where eBay collects taxes and I have not heard a peep.

If you buy from Amazon, Wal-Mart, Target ect. etc. etc. etc. you are already used to paying Sales Tax, many or most of these sites have been charging Sales Tax for years.

Some of the message variations I am seeing:

Seller charges sales tax in multiple provinces. on .ca

Taxes may be applicable at checkout. Learn more   

Sales tax may apply when shipping to: IA*, MN*, WA*.

* Tax applies to subtotal + S&H for these provinces only

[hlmacdon]

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

@hlmacdon 

My main comment is if it's clearly expressed officially for the casual eBay shopper then there is no finger pointing after the fact? In the past, I have seen "Explanation Messages" that appear on dot com listings but go to the listing on dot ca and nada. Should be the same with ALL platforms.

I definitely agree regarding leveling the playing field with those offshore sellers. If/how it is being applied, is anyone's guess though?

-Lotz

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It's clearly labelled as tax in the checkout screens and on invoices. Product pages could be more specific but it isn't like most sites call out tax rates on anywhere other than those locations. If a customer questions it (and I still haven't had one that has) you point them to any of eBay's pages on the subject and explain that like other major ecommerce marketplaces, they are the one's collecting and remitting tax, not yourself.

Other international marketplaces like Ali have been charging state tax as legislation rolls out. On ebay my purchases from international sellers have been charged appropriate state tax when I ship them into the US (cheaper to eat the taxes in some cases compared to the higher shipping cost). Other midsize US ecom sites I shop on have been implementing state taxes as they roll out. In short, I've been charged US state tax where I would expect to have been.

[recped]

The problem on eBay is that it seems to have a lot of people who like to claim things like "there is no tax on used" or "only a "real" business can charge sales tax".

I spend a lot of time on the US boards, it's amazing how many sellers apparently have never bought anything online other than on eBay, they have no clue about what goes in in the rest of the ecommerce world.

They also have no clue about their other tax obligations, many still think that if you don't sell more than $20,000 which triggers a tax slip from PayPal it means you don't have to report income.

What I find truly "funny" is that for years if a foreign buyer asked a US seller for a lower declared value they would be considered dishonest, probably a thief/scammer and should be blocked, have their order cancelled and be reported to eBay. Now those same people are screaming about sales tax and trying to find any way to EVADE (not avoid) similar taxes now that they are the ones paying.

Hardly anyone likes to pay taxes but hardly anyone would want to go without the services the taxes pay for.

Hypocrites and not very well informed at that.

[hlmacdon]

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@recped wrote:

Hardly anyone likes to pay taxes but hardly anyone would want to go without the services the taxes pay for.

Hypocrites and not very well informed at that.

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That vocal minority segment of eBayers on the US side that complain about anything to do with any level of government being involved with anything online. Something involving socialism, communism, or some other ism. There is something to be said for gating sellers. 

[sylviebee]

When I first saw this I wondered if it was an import tax.   That, I think, would matter to Americans.  Since it's a sales tax that's another story.

The problem with taxes for online purchases is that buyers are accustomed to not paying any and it takes time to absorb that there is an additional charge.

It's still new to them.

[pjcdn2005]

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@recped wrote:

What I find truly "funny" is that for years if a foreign buyer asked a US seller for a lower declared value they would be considered dishonest, probably a thief/scammer and should be blocked, have their order cancelled and be reported to eBay. Now those same people are screaming about sales tax and trying to find any way to EVADE (not avoid) similar taxes now that they are the ones paying

______________

So true! 

 

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[lotzofuniquegoodies]

From the dot com board for your reading enjoyment.

UPDATE: Internet Sales Tax Now Applies to More States

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Announcements/UPDATE-Internet-Sales-Tax-now-applies-to-more-states-eBa...

-Lotz

PS.  Possibly wouldn't hurt for these announcements to show up on dot ca board et al

[teslatek]

I have the same problem with my latest sale. I am a Canadian selling to a US customer and eBay is erroneously charging the buyer a US sales tax. Talked with support and they agree this is a mistake. Tried editing my invoice and removing the tax and buyer says when they try to pay the sales tax is still there. Obviously their software has not been upgraded. What a bunch of morons in charge of eBay.

[femmefan1946]

Read the thread.

The tax was charged to the buyer by eBay because your customer is in a state that charges sales tax, and these taxes have recently been extended to online purchases.

It has nothing to do with you and really nothing to do with eBay who are collecting and remitting the tax as a pass through.

The Customer Service rep was wrong and obviously poorly trained.

The software was upgraded to charge appropriate taxes in the states that are charging the taxes.

If you get questioned, tell your customer it's Donald Trump's fault. He put those Supreme Court judges in place who voted for this.

[recped]

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@teslatek wrote:

I have the same problem with my latest sale. I am a Canadian selling to a US customer and eBay is erroneously charging the buyer a US sales tax. Talked with support and they agree this is a mistake. Tried editing my invoice and removing the tax and buyer says when they try to pay the sales tax is still there. Obviously their software has not been upgraded. What a bunch of morons in charge of eBay.

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eBay is charging the buyer US Sales Tax AS REQUIRED BY LAW, nothing erroneous about it.

FYI - Since January 1 they are also collecting GST for sales to Australia and it's looking like sometime in 2020 or 2021 they may have to collect VAT on sales to the EU.

It wouldn't surprise me one bit if at some point Canada will require eBay to collect GST/HST on sales to Canada from the US or elsewhere.

The free ride is OVER!

[teslatek]

eBay cannot charge tax on an international purchase plain and simple. When this tax is not disclosed in the sellers ad this can be considered "FRAUD". Two wrongs do not make it right. Time for a class action lawsuit!

[ypdc_dennis]

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@teslatek wrote:

eBay cannot charge tax on an international purchase plain and simple.

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Wrong.  eBay can.

If the destination is in Australia (under $1000AU) or one of the sales tax enabled states, it is required by law. The Seller is not the one collecting the tax.  The Buyer can complain to their local government.

If buying through the GSP (from USA or UK based sellers), Pitney-Bowes is the one doing the collecting (and only for countries that PB has legal collection arrangements) for eBay. The Seller is not collecting the tax.

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