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Amazon Sales Tax

Technically you're still responsible to pay the taxes ;)

Amazon has been losing this battle left and right. They recently agreed to start collecting sales taxes for us Massachusetts residents.

I think the end is coming for tax free purchases
 
maflynn said:
Technically you're still responsible to pay the taxes ;)

Amazon has been losing this battle left and right. They recently agreed to start collecting sales taxes for us Massachusetts residents.

I think the end is coming for tax free purchases
Click to expand...

You can still drive to New Hampshire for your shopping :D.
 
maflynn said:
Technically you're still responsible to pay the taxes ;)

Amazon has been losing this battle left and right. They recently agreed to start collecting sales taxes for us Massachusetts residents.

I think the end is coming for tax free purchases
Click to expand...

Who in their right mind would report items they bought from sites that don't charge sales tax?
 
Thus is just plain wrong.

I hated when they started taxing my amazon purchases, but when they created a market presence here, it screwed me up.
 
Apple fanboy said:
At least the advantage Amazon has over small local businesses will come to an end. Amazon have had it all their own way for far too long.
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That's not the only advantage - price is a huge motivator. The collecting of sales tax by Amazon is inconsistent as well (AFAIK), in my state they started because they now have a physical presence, in other states they still don't collect the tax.
 
maflynn said:
That's not the only advantage - price is a huge motivator. The collecting of sales tax by Amazon is inconsistent as well (AFAIK), in my state they started because they now have a physical presence, in other states they still don't collect the tax.
Click to expand...

They don't in Washington State or Oregon.
 
Amazon is building a facility here in VA, so will begin collecting sales tax (5.36%) sometime this year. Local retailers and those with web sites and physical stores in the state have to collect sales tax for online orders. Levels the playing field.
 
Is it at least reliable over there? Under NZ law you only have to pay tax if the tax is $60 or more, so unless you're placing large orders or buying a lot of things at once then there's no tax payable. However, Amazon tends to err on the side of caution and seems to start collecting at around the $50 mark. You then get a refund once the goods arrive in the country. That's a bit of a mess; is it better in the US?
 
maflynn said:
Technically you're still responsible to pay the taxes ;)

Amazon has been losing this battle left and right. They recently agreed to start collecting sales taxes for us Massachusetts residents.

I think the end is coming for tax free purchases
Click to expand...

It had to happen at some point. Sales tax is something that should be all or nothing, not subject to the state where the item ships. As for being technically responsible for use tax, most of it flies under the radar. It is likely flagged over a certain amount. There is also such a thing as sales tax evasion. For example if you have something shipped out of state (when you are not traveling to the other state) to avoid being charged sales tax by an in state vendor, that would be considered sales tax evasion.

Nermal said:
Is it at least reliable over there? Under NZ law you only have to pay tax if the tax is $60 or more, so unless you're placing large orders or buying a lot of things at once then there's no tax payable. However, Amazon tends to err on the side of caution and seems to start collecting at around the $50 mark. You then get a refund once the goods arrive in the country. That's a bit of a mess; is it better in the US?
Click to expand...

It's just tacked onto the purchase price for any amount that ships to a state where they collect sales tax.
 
They've been collecting tax in Texas for around a year now. It gave me quite a bit of a price hike. It's quite unfortunate, but I'll live. :p

It just gives me more of a reason to go in store.
 
I'm actually happy that Amazon has to charge sales tax. It gives the brick and mortar stores a fighting chance. I admit that even I was using Best Buy as a store room for my Amazon purchases before... some products just need to be handled before you purchase.
 
maflynn said:
That's not the only advantage - price is a huge motivator. The collecting of sales tax by Amazon is inconsistent as well (AFAIK), in my state they started because they now have a physical presence, in other states they still don't collect the tax.
Click to expand...

Best Buy price matches Amazon. By the end of 2014, Amazon will collect taxes for all states that have sales tax.
 
As much as I didn't mind tax-free purchases from Amazon, in the end I also agree that it's an unfair advantage compared to brick and mortar businesses.

Typical shopper goes display shopping at Best Buy. Then leave Best Buy without buying anything, goes home and then fires up web browser and orders (the same product) tax-free from Amazon. So yes, Amazon had a huge advantage, while the physical retail stores were bleeding to death many going into bankruptcy.
 
Mr. McMac said:
Who in their right mind would report items they bought from sites that don't charge sales tax?
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I'm just saying :) States have been aching to collect the lost revenue and they try to put the onus on the buyer if the seller isn't collecting. I agree that 99.99% of people don't report (and yes I pulled that figure out of the air :D )
 
Apple fanboy said:
We pay 20% sales tax in the UK. A lot less than most states I believe.
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You're saying your 20% rate is less then what we pay in the states?

No, I believe the average sales tax is in the 5% range. California probably has the highest and some states like NY and Florida have local and state sales tax that increase the overall tax rate but its still far below 20%

My state (Massachusetts) has 6.125%
 
maflynn said:
You're saying your 20% rate is less then what we pay in the states?

No, I believe the average sales tax is in the 5% range. California probably has the highest and some states like NY and Florida have local and state sales tax that increase the overall tax rate but its still far below 20%

My state (Massachusetts) has 6.125%
Click to expand...

I'm sure it's just a typo...Mass sales tax is 6.25%.:D
 
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