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To collect sales tax or not?

3 pointsby northbandalmost 10 years ago
We have a where we provide instructional training through the form of videos, web-text modules, and online testing.<p>We are wondering whether we need to collect sales tax? Our company is not in the US and so far we have been collecting sales tax but with the launch of a new service we&#x27;re wondering if this is needed.<p>So curious - how many people out there are collecting sales tax on your apps?<p>Thanks!

2 comments

greenyodaalmost 10 years ago
According to Nolo.com[1]:<p><i>&quot;If an online retailer has a physical presence in a particular state, such as a store, business office, or warehouse, it must collect sales tax from customers in that state. If a business does not have a physical presence in a state, it is not required to collect sales tax for sales into that state. This rule is derived from a 1992 Supreme Court decision which held that mail-order merchants did not need to collect sales taxes for sales into states where they did not have a physical presence.&quot;</i><p>Since your business, being located outside the U.S., presumably has no physical presence in any U.S. state, it doesn&#x27;t seem like you need to collect sales tax.<p>[1] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nolo.com&#x2F;legal-encyclopedia&#x2F;sales-tax-internet-29919.html" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nolo.com&#x2F;legal-encyclopedia&#x2F;sales-tax-internet-29...</a>
patmccalmost 10 years ago
Follow your local laws. If wherever you live&#x2F;operate requires you collect sales tax, collect it. Some places have weird rules about this; maybe you have to collect sales tax from everyone, maybe only from residents of your country, maybe only from residents of your state&#x2F;province, whatever. Look into it. This is the one you definitely can&#x27;t mess with, if you don&#x27;t make the effort you can be on the hook for serious penalties.<p>Once you&#x27;ve done that, as greenyoda says it looks like you&#x27;re clear in the US. If you have any other large markets it&#x27;s probably worth looking into them.