Sales tax on Amazon and Ebay

Discussion in 'Marketplace Discussions' started by slipkid, May 9, 2018.

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  1. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    I live in Pennsylvania. A state with 6% sales tax.

    Up until a few years ago I was never charged sales tax on items I bought on Amazon or Ebay.

    Amazon started collecting sales tax a few years ago when ordering direct from them but there was no tax added if buying from a marketplace seller who was not located in PA.

    Just recently though I've been getting charged PA sales tax for marketplace purchases, including when buying from sellers who are not even in the USA. And I swear I see this now on ebay as well.

    Has this changed recently? Anyone else seeing this?
     
  2. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    No, and at 9.25%, believe me, I notice. Better check your states tax laws, your legislature may have recently voted in a change.
     
  3. Nephrodoc

    Nephrodoc Forum Resident

    In California, we have been paying sales tax on Amazon purchases for a few years now.
     
  4. Bubbamike

    Bubbamike Forum Resident

    In Washington State they have recently started charging sales tax on orders from marketplace sellers.
     
  5. TeacFan

    TeacFan Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Arcadia, Ca.
    The ruling use to be if the outfit has brick & mortar facilities in the state..tax must be collected. Lately, that has been getting fuzzy.
     
  6. There's an important Supreme Court case coming up that may very well decide this issue for good. The government wants taxes. I suspect we eventually will be taxed on all Internet purchases, whether or not that retailer has what they call nexus in your state.
     
  7. TeacFan

    TeacFan Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Arcadia, Ca.
    Yep..The times be a changin'
     
  8. daca

    daca Currently on Double Secret Probation

    Location:
    Pittsburgh, PA
    * - Rate not applicable to residents of Allegheny County (7%) or Philly (8%)

    :realmad: :cussing:
     
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  9. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter


    Right, glad I don't live in Philly (I'm in the outlying burbs/in the sticks kinda).
     
  10. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    Same here, but what's new for me is getting charged sales tax by Amazon now when buying from a marketplace seller that is not based in my state. Heck some of them I buy from are in the UK!

    I could swear I'm getting hit by this now on ebay too which never happened before, but maybe I am confused (have to look at my receipts).
     
  11. cdash99

    cdash99 Senior Member

    Location:
    Mass
    It might depend on where the marketplace seller is located. Part of the problem, especially if the seller is part of the FBA program, is that Amazon can move goods in out of their warehouses at their whim. So it's very possible that items from an Iowa seller are ending up in a PA warehouse, which could trigger the tax add-on.
     
  12. Amazon started tacking on local sales tax for its third-party Prime fulfillment program about a couple of years ago. If the third-party company selling on Amazon is supposed to charge tax in your state, it's now there.
     
  13. DarrenMcCall

    DarrenMcCall Forum Resident

    Location:
    Georgia
    I've been getting hit with tax on both Amazon and eBay.
    On eBay you can shop around for an out-of-state seller so you don't get hit with sales tax.
     
  14. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    Something is definitely going on with internet sales taxes lately. I just got charged sales tax ordering from Deep Discount directly (as opposed to buying from them on ebay), which has NEVER happened to me b4. Either it is a PA thing that's changed on all internet sales or a gov't thing in general that is now directing all these merchants to start charging local sales tax.

    I was surprised to be charged sales tax on Amazon & Ebay sellers not based in PA and now this.
     
  15. I believe Super D recently added a PA-based facility somewhere in their corporate structure.
     
    slipkid likes this.
  16. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    Ah, OK, maybe part of this mystery is due to that!
     
  17. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    Being charged taxes by sellers outside of the U.S. is a new one to me.
     
  18. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    It was for me too (until I started this thread). Yet that is what Amazon is doing now.

    Anything I buy from marketplace sellers on Amazon no matter where they are located has an "estimated tax" added on.

    I'm curious if anyone else sees this. Try it for yourself.

    Go to Amazon.

    Login so it knows who you are/where you are located.

    Search for any CD that might have some international marketplace sellers.

    Here's a good example to look for since it is a recent release by a British band that has some international sellers.

    "The Temperance Movement A Deeper Cut"

    Go to Amazon page for that.

    (I'll paste it in here too but I know crap like vigilinks or whatever its called could screw this up so you might want to do it yourself by searching)
    https://www.amazon.com/Deeper-Cut-TEMPERANCE-MOVEMENT/dp/B077397X3K

    Click on the "13 New from $10.75" to see the marketplace sellers.

    The first seller in the list is named "OxfordshireEngland". The delivery says "Ships from United Kingdom".

    Yet Amazon shows me the price as "$10.75 + $3.99 shipping + $0.89 estimated tax".

    Ditto for ALL the sellers in the list (some with higher tax because of a higher price). Including other UK sellers, Switzerland, and Poland.

    WTF??? I've never seen this b4. I could be confused but I think I saw this type of thing on ebay as well.

    Maybe it is just a new Pennsylvania thing as someone suggested above. Am curious if others see this as well though.
     
  19. Some of these "foreign" sellers are little more than international arms of American-owned distributors, so that may explain the tax. The rise of streaming is quickly gutting the companies that made their living in the music distribution retail channel. Amazon's draconian demands on third-party music sellers proving the provenance of their goods has resulted in only a few huge outlets surviving in the marketplace. Most of whom operate under multiple names and businesses.
     
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  20. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    Maybe it is your state. I don't get tax on most items. Nothing on imports that I can see or for most "Marketplace" sellers.

    [​IMG]
     
  21. Muzyck

    Muzyck Pardon my scruffy hospitality

    Location:
    Long Island
    Amazon will collect sales tax for shipments to Pennsylvania as states seek to recoup billions

    I am interpreting what I read in this article to mean that the new law forces Amazon to collect taxes for all sales sent to Pennsylvania regardless of seller location. This means all sales, all sellers including Marketplace, even those not in the states. Another new twist is that Amazon is actually doing the tax collection. Prior to this Marketplace sellers that should have been charging tax were responsible for the handling, Amazon only collected taxes on items that it sold, not third party sellers.
     
    Last edited: May 17, 2018
    slipkid likes this.
  22. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    Thx, guess that explains it. Time to find out which legislators in my area voted for this crap so I can be sure to vote against them next time.
     
  23. Do these taxes also apply to private sellers selling used goods?
    If so, I find this particularly unfair as it means the government is now taxing multiple times on the same item.
     
  24. slipkid

    slipkid Senior Member Thread Starter

    Yes, I see "estimated tax" for the two USED marketplace sales on the item I mentioned above as well. And one of those sellers IS IN GERMANY fer crissakes.
     
  25. In Australia from July this year all imports will be subject to 10% GST tax. I can understand on new items but used items from private sellers is very unfair and I will be looking into the legality of this.
    At present overseas purchases under $1000 were tax free.
    The increasing online purchases have made governments worldwide begins to tax online purchases which I suppose is understandable.
     
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