PSA: Ebay automatically collecting Sales Tax on purchases shipped to certain states now

[VNutz]

This has nothing to do with saving brick and mortar. It's the government wanting more of your money to waste.

 

I'm shocked Illinois hasn't done this yet.

[deadsolid...shank]

This has nothing to do with saving brick and mortar. It's the government wanting more of your money to waste.

 

True. Saving B&M was never a reason for this. But it may well help them as an unintended benefit.

 

I’ve thought this was needed for a long time. Sales tax is about the most equitable tax out there, it doesn’t discriminate based on anything. Personally, I like seeing some of society’s “freeloaders” have to contribute something on occasion too.

[ChronicSlicer]

Sales tax is what it is..BUT I don`t find paying tax on a used item very cool. It`s been taxed once when bought new, how many damn times does a used golf club, or a used car need to be taxed.

 

Pretty soon Facebook Flea Market, yard sales, flea markets, swap meets, Craigslist are going to become targets as well.

[sandtrap]

On another tangent along these lines. Pay cash, No trail. every paypal, Apple Pay, or whatever electronic transfer will at some point become a tax point. Keep cash alive!

[cane700]

This has nothing to do with saving brick and mortar. It's the government wanting more of your money to waste.

 

I'm shocked Illinois hasn't done this yet.

 

Same here

[Stetson]

Surprised nobody has mentioned how this will hurt small online businesses the most. Corporations such as Amazon, Walmart, etc can afford the additional compliance cost to correctly charge, collect and remit sales tax to potentially thousands of jurisdictions around the country. The small online businesses can not afford to adhere to the requirements

[cxx]

Surprised nobody has mentioned how this will hurt small online businesses the most. Corporations such as Amazon, Walmart, etc can afford the additional compliance cost to correctly charge, collect and remit sales tax to potentially thousands of jurisdictions around the country. The small online businesses can not afford to adhere to the requirements

The only real option for on-line small businesses is to operate under a large company with appropriate infrastructure, like ebay or amazon.

 

It is likely that a independent business will not exceed the lower limit for reporting/paying sales tax at the locations that it ships to. Then again, they all have different limits. Kind of a nightmare actually.

[Stetson]

Surprised nobody has mentioned how this will hurt small online businesses the most. Corporations such as Amazon, Walmart, etc can afford the additional compliance cost to correctly charge, collect and remit sales tax to potentially thousands of jurisdictions around the country. The small online businesses can not afford to adhere to the requirements

The only real option for on-line small businesses is to operate under a large company with appropriate infrastructure, like ebay or amazon.

 

It is likely that a independent business will not exceed the lower limit for reporting/paying sales tax at the locations that it ships to. Then again, they all have different limits. Kind of a nightmare actually.

 

Yep, nightmare. It is not reasonable for Jane who is selling hand knitted baby bibs to look into the requirements of every location she is shipping to and comply with those municipal and state laws. Thus Jane has to go eBay, Amazon, Etsy etc.

 

Yes compliance with applicable laws is a burden for traditional business so small business online should adhere to applicable laws. It is just a barrier to entry that will keep some out of the marketplace

[thevaporz]

Will this apply to individual PayPal goods/services transactions now? If so, I might consider doing friends/family deals only with trusted members here. And there's always cash deals off Craigslist to consider.

[vernon]

Like a lot of guys here have already alluded to, they'll likely just buy less. I know I will. The "appearance" of a deal quite often trumps whether it really even is a deal and not having to add things like tax and or shipping is a very effective means of marketing.

 

See: Amazon Prime

 

Regardless, fewer overall sales benefits no one.

 

Except maybe the the consumer who's now saving more of his expendable income but certainly not the economy.

 

More/higher taxes benefit no one except the lawmakers who use them to build their brand, establish their power base and "buy" votes with our money.

 

That's how I see it anyway.

[Mudguard]

I've thought this was needed for a long time. Sales tax is about the most equitable tax out there, it doesn't discriminate based on anything. Personally, I like seeing some of society's "freeloaders" have to contribute something on occasion too.

 

Actually it's the reverse. A sales tax is more penal depending on your income. All things being equal, if you have someone who earns $400 per week vs someone who earns $1000 per week. Both spend $100 per week on groceries, who spends more on sales tax relative to their income?

NB obviously you'll have different tax rates depending on annual income, but I tend to feel that a sales tax is generally unfair to people on lower incomes.

[deadsolid...shank]

I've thought this was needed for a long time. Sales tax is about the most equitable tax out there, it doesn't discriminate based on anything. Personally, I like seeing some of society's "freeloaders" have to contribute something on occasion too.

 

Actually it's the reverse. A sales tax is more penal depending on your income. All things being equal, if you have someone who earns $400 per week vs someone who earns $1000 per week. Both spend $100 per week on groceries, who spends more on sales tax relative to their income?

NB obviously you'll have different tax rates depending on annual income, but I tend to feel that a sales tax is generally unfair to people on lower incomes.

 

Interesting way to look at it Mudguard. I can see your point of view on it.

 

I still don’t agree because I still believe since everyone pays the same amount it’s still the fairest. A sales tax doesn’t change because one person makes X amount while another makes Y.

[kcsf]

I've thought this was needed for a long time. Sales tax is about the most equitable tax out there, it doesn't discriminate based on anything. Personally, I like seeing some of society's "freeloaders" have to contribute something on occasion too.

 

Actually it's the reverse. A sales tax is more penal depending on your income. All things being equal, if you have someone who earns $400 per week vs someone who earns $1000 per week. Both spend $100 per week on groceries, who spends more on sales tax relative to their income?

NB obviously you'll have different tax rates depending on annual income, but I tend to feel that a sales tax is generally unfair to people on lower incomes.

 

Exactly why many states (and rightfully so) have no tax on food.

[Mudguard]

I still don’t agree because I still believe since everyone pays the same amount it’s still the fairest. A sales tax doesn’t change because one person makes X amount while another makes Y.

 

It's a little off topic, but it's still penal on the lower income, as a single person earning $50k per year, vs a single person earning $25k per year, still probably needs to spend the same amount on food. Obviously the higher earner may buy nicer cuts of meat or more expensive wine, but fundamentally they still need to spend a minimum per week.

We have it in New Zealand, 15% and it applies to everything, but it's part of the price of the goods or service, so you never see it. There are no exemptions. But as someone mentioned earlier, it seems ludicrous to apply it to used goods, because where would it end?

 

Also the tax system in the US seems quite difference, the majority of us here don't file tax returns or have much to do with our tax department unless you're self employed or have big swings in your income during the year (leave a job, have your holiday paid etc).

[newportbeach]

Forget the wall and just do the same flat tax everywhere. Make it simple.

[Wooderson]

Why do we want to save brick and mortar. Just frees up more land.

[deadsolid...shank]

I still don’t agree because I still believe since everyone pays the same amount it’s still the fairest. A sales tax doesn’t change because one person makes X amount while another makes Y.

 

It's a little off topic, but it's still penal on the lower income, as a single person earning $50k per year, vs a single person earning $25k per year, still probably needs to spend the same amount on food. Obviously the higher earner may buy nicer cuts of meat or more expensive wine, but fundamentally they still need to spend a minimum per week.

We have it in New Zealand, 15% and it applies to everything, but it's part of the price of the goods or service, so you never see it. There are no exemptions. But as someone mentioned earlier, it seems ludicrous to apply it to used goods, because where would it end?

 

Also the tax system in the US seems quite difference, the majority of us here don't file tax returns or have much to do with our tax department unless you're self employed or have big swings in your income during the year (leave a job, have your holiday paid etc).

 

As someone mentioned earlier, food is not taxed. I can’t say for certain all 50states are exactly that way, but I do think the majority are.

[Duffer222]

States that tax food, and rate:

Alabama, Arkansas (3%), Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois (1%), Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri (1.225%), Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee (5.5%), Utah (1.75%), Virginia (1.5% + 1% local option tax), and West Virginia (5%)

[rynobucket]

I don't mind this too much, granted my hoing ways have been on a decline the last few years. While I agree a sales tax impacts different income levels differently, it does not come close to the difference that get levied in income taxes. The federal gov't will take over 1/4 of what my wife and I earn (then the state takes their cut) and I do not get a refund. Somebody that has a small income and has children, will essentially pay no income taxes and will actually get more money back than they put in after claiming their deductions on their return.

[STPBMW]

This law has saved me thousands over the past two months. I'll ship a few items to out of state friends, a reason to visit I guess

[JackpotJohnny]

I don't mind this too much, granted my hoing ways have been on a decline the last few years. While I agree a sales tax impacts different income levels differently, it does not come close to the difference that get levied in income taxes. The federal gov't will take over 1/4 of what my wife and I earn (then the state takes their cut) and I do not get a refund. Somebody that has a small income and has children, will essentially pay no income taxes and will actually get more money back than they put in after claiming their deductions on their return.

Completely agree, and this totally hit me today after getting the taxes done.

pay more money in income taxes than some make in a year, and get nothing back. Pay more money in childcare and tuition than I pay in income tax, and all that entitles me to is the privilege of not having to actually pay more in taxes at the end of the year. Over 25% tax on the gallon of gas that I put in the car I have to pay 10% registration tax on to get me to work to make the money to pay the taxes. And now on top of that I have to pay sales tax

on discretionary purchases I make with what little I have left.

Jesus.

[aceofclubs]

Well this sucks. I never really gave paying sales tax on Ebay much thought until I recently purchased a used club from Global Golf and they charged me sales tax because i live in PA.

I buy online because i think $500 for a new driver is insane so i always buy a used older model. There really are no options for used clubs around me.

I always try to buy smart, i want to able to get most of my money back if I don’t like the club. This is going to make that a little more difficult.

 

Just please dont add sales tax to the BST.

[GSDriver]

Expect to become the norm, no big deal...then again, I use Ebay maybe once a year now, it's just not what used to be.

[sm_watts]

I'm actually okay with it. I spent a few years as a high school teacher in a small town in Oregon, where they have a state income tax but no sales tax. Around Christmas, we would get a list from the district of low income families that we as a staff would buy food for and some gifts for their kids. Too many times we would show up to deliver these donations to a house a whole lot bigger than mine, with big screen TV's and nice cars out front, who CLEARLY were not reporting their income in a completely truthful manner, which meant they also weren't paying their income taxes as honestly as I was either. Then I moved to Wyoming, which has a state sales tax but no income tax. Here I know people who order as much stuff as possible online to avoid paying sales tax. Now, I'm not a fan of paying MORE taxes, but when tax rates increase because states are running low on revenue and I get stuck paying more because I'm honest while I know that others are exploiting ways around it, it doesn't make me a happy camper.

[Mudguard]

I got dinged last night.We already have a massive gas tax.

So how much is the tax in a litre of petrol?

[SwingBlues]

This weekend I found 3balls now charges sales tax for CA. Screw that. Cancelled my cart and 3Balls lost out on $400 in sale, save my money for something else instead. And another seller :)

 

I can't recall them or global charging sales tax. Till now.

[rynobucket]

This weekend I found 3balls now charges sales tax for CA. Screw that. Cancelled my cart and 3Balls lost out on $400 in sale, save my money for something else instead. And another seller :)

I can't recall them or global charging sales tax. Till now.

If 3Balls is charging tax, more than likely all online retailers will shortly as well. It is not as though they benefit from imposing a tax, it does not make them more money (actually loses some in your case). Do you expect them to stick their neck out and not impose the tax if your state requires them to? I have noticed all major online golf retailers now charge tax to WI, it is something we'll have to get used to.

On a side note, I wouldn't be suprised to see taxes begin to be applied to all paypal transactions being classified as 'goods and services', this would impact BST sales. The government will find every way to extract our money from us as humanly possible.

[tdk8180]

Whatev

[BB28403]

It was bound to happen, pay in cash on Craigslist if you want no sales tax.

[vernon]

I'm actually okay with it. I spent a few years as a high school teacher in a small town in Oregon, where they have a state income tax but no sales tax. Around Christmas, we would get a list from the district of low income families that we as a staff would buy food for and some gifts for their kids. Too many times we would show up to deliver these donations to a house a whole lot bigger than mine, with big screen TV's and nice cars out front, who CLEARLY were not reporting their income in a completely truthful manner, which meant they also weren't paying their income taxes as honestly as I was either. Then I moved to Wyoming, which has a state sales tax but no income tax. Here I know people who order as much stuff as possible online to avoid paying sales tax. Now, I'm not a fan of paying MORE taxes, but when tax rates increase because states are running low on revenue and I get stuck paying more because I'm honest while I know that others are exploiting ways around it, it doesn't make me a happy camper.

As long as there are taxes there will ALWAYS be those that exploit their way around them.

 

And they will usually be those who have both the means and wherewithal to pay them as well as to get out of paying them.

 

Pretty sure I know which way they're gonna go.

 

This deal only hurts the consumer that chooses to continue buying online and pays the sales tax and the vendor who loses out on sales to those of us that choose not to.

 

Most times, free shipping and no tax is the primary motivator for me to buy online and I don't think I'm alone.

 

Take away that incentive and the deals don't seem quite as attractive and many of us will just pass on the purchase all together.

 

Just my perspective anyways.