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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

Sold an item to New Jersey and eBay tells me they collected sales tax on it.   Is NJ now requiring sales tax on out of state purchases? 

Is eBay collecting and remitting it, or do I have to find where this money is and pay them?  Where the money is exactly I'm not sure, the total on eBay is different (higher) from what I got through PayPal, so presumably eBay has the remainder someplace.  

I thought these states when requiring this had a dollar threshold for me as seller to have to reach before I was required to collect and remit to them.   It's not likely at my sales level I would meet even a $1000 threshold for any one state in a year.  

My opinion is it's crazy to expect me to keep track now not only in my state by county of buyer, but also for potentially up to 40, 45 other states and be expected to pay maybe two bucks here, four bucks there, 28 cents to the next one, etc.  But that's probably a different topic entirely. 


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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@7606dennis wrote:

@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

Most of them are not committing violations. I don’t sell enough into any given state to meet the threshold. Many of them are 100k before you have to start charging.

 

i have always collected on sales in my own state because I have an economic nexus.


If the smaller web sites do not sell enough to meet the minimum volume of sales requirements in a state to require them to collect the tax under the state's market facilitator law, I'm not sure I'd really consider that site as being worth my efforts to list on.  I believe that under the MF laws of most states it is the total volume of site's sales in that state and not the individual sellers that counts.  Of course, if the site doesn't meet the criteria the buyer would have to pay the use tax to their state directly as they are suppose to have been doing all along.

 

It is good that you are collecting the sales tax for sales within your own state.  Of course, you would be required to collect it in other states that you have a nexus in as well. 

 

 


I don't know that this is the reason why they aren't charging sales tax.  At least one site I contacted said that the Facilitator law doesn't apply to them.  I still don't understand why, but that is what I was told by their CSR.  But an interesting thought to consider because if as you say they aren't selling enough into many of the states that require it, then they are a very small site indeed.


mam98031  •  Volunteer Community Member
Message 31 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@mam98031 wrote:

@7606dennis wrote:

@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

Most of them are not committing violations. I don’t sell enough into any given state to meet the threshold. Many of them are 100k before you have to start charging.

 

i have always collected on sales in my own state because I have an economic nexus.


If the smaller web sites do not sell enough to meet the minimum volume of sales requirements in a state to require them to collect the tax under the state's market facilitator law, I'm not sure I'd really consider that site as being worth my efforts to list on.  I believe that under the MF laws of most states it is the total volume of site's sales in that state and not the individual sellers that counts.  Of course, if the site doesn't meet the criteria the buyer would have to pay the use tax to their state directly as they are suppose to have been doing all along.

 

It is good that you are collecting the sales tax for sales within your own state.  Of course, you would be required to collect it in other states that you have a nexus in as well. 

 

 


I don't know that this is the reason why they aren't charging sales tax.  At least one site I contacted said that the Facilitator law doesn't apply to them.  I still don't understand why, but that is what I was told by their CSR.  But an interesting thought to consider because if as you say they aren't selling enough into many of the states that require it, then they are a very small site indeed.


The only reason I could think of that a state's MF law wouldn't apply to them is if they didn't meet the state's criteria with regard to volume.  I'm not sure if a site based outside of the US could plead that they aren't subject to any individual state's laws in the US.  However, that would seem to me force them not to be able to legally conduct business within that particular state and maybe even the USA altogether.  

 

Of course, the buyer would still be responsible for paying the tax to the state if the site didn't collect it for some reason.  

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."
Message 32 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

With all due respect I think we were talking about buying from those sites not listing on them. 

 

Im not interested in other people listing on my niche website.

 

Message 33 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

With all due respect I think we were talking about buying from those sites not listing on them. 

 

Im not interested in other people listing on my niche website.

 


If those "niche" sites start getting noticeably more sales, more sellers will come.

 

 


mam98031  •  Volunteer Community Member
Message 34 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

My website is all my stuff. Top of google search for 20 years.

 

maybe I misunderstood the discussion? I thought we were talking about buying from small websites that don’t pay taxes?

Message 35 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

My website is all my stuff. Top of google search for 20 years.

 

maybe I misunderstood the discussion? I thought we were talking about buying from small websites that don’t pay taxes?


I suppose it is all in how one defines a "small website".  If you compare other sites to Ebay & Amazon, most everything else would be consider a small site I suppose.

 

But lets go by this list.  I know of at least four sites that are not collecting sales tax as a Facilitator.  

 

https://www.ecommercebytes.com/2019/02/09/sellers-choice-awards-2019-merchants-rate-top-online-marke...


mam98031  •  Volunteer Community Member
Message 36 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

Tank you... that was helpful... However, the sales tax is it collected on NEW items only? or used also?

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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@pinney49cs wrote:

Tank you... that was helpful... However, the sales tax is it collected on NEW items only? or used also?


Sales tax is on EVERYTHING.


mam98031  •  Volunteer Community Member
Message 38 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

General reply:

 

In a Twilight Zone coinkidinky kind of way, I just consummated a sale of a, um, banjo which required much communication and negotiation over the past 2+ days.   

 

The buyer is in the state mentioned frequently here and, when we finally got some things narrowed down, asked for free shipping and to pay no tax.  Oh ho, I replied, I can't do anything about the tax.  Explained that a seller does not collect or even see money paid by buyers for taxes; it's done by ebay and sent to the state.

 

I could have knocked the tax hit off of my price but I didn't.  It's now a done deal; money in my paypal account a few minutes ago.

 

This was a mid-$$$ sale and the sales tax was most likely a significant amount for the buyer but that makes it a significant amount for the seller - moi - who isn't going to go that low.

 

This did make me ponder a thought, however.  Will this be the new wave of making an offer:  free shipping and no taxes paid.  Hmmm...

 

 

Sherry

=^.^= =^.^=
( ) ( )
" " =^.^= " "
Message 39 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

My website is all my stuff. Top of google search for 20 years.

 

maybe I misunderstood the discussion? I thought we were talking about buying from small websites that don’t pay taxes?


I don't think it is a matter of buying from small web sites that don't pay taxes.  Regardless of the size of the site, sellers do not pay sales taxes, they merely collect them.  It is the buyer that is taxed by his state with regard to sales tax, not the seller.  The seller may indeed be taxed on the income made from selling by his state and even the buyer's state if he has a nexus in that state requiring him to file an income tax return in that state.  However, he only collects sales tax from the buyer and remits it to the state to which it is owed by the buyer.

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."
Message 40 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth wrote:

My website is all my stuff. Top of google search for 20 years.

 

maybe I misunderstood the discussion? I thought we were talking about buying from small websites that don’t pay taxes?


Regardless of whether the site is too small to be required to collect sales tax, that doesn't relieve the buyer from their obligation to pay it.  It only means that the site doesn't have to collect it.  

 

Since you appear to be talking about your own site, that would probably not be classed as a Marketplace Facilitator anyway.  However, if a site is one where multiple merchants list their items and the site doesn't meet the criteria of the state to require them to collect it, that is probably a site that I wouldn't really be interested in listing on.

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."
Message 41 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

My only gripe is that whoever is 'collecting' the tax, is that I am being taxed on items that are non-taxable and collecting a higher tax for the city that the pkg is being delivered to Smiley Mad

 

 

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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?


@postingid2017 wrote:

My only gripe is that whoever is 'collecting' the tax, is that I am being taxed on items that are non-taxable and collecting a higher tax for the city that the pkg is being delivered to Smiley Mad

 

 


That is being agreed upon by your State and the market facilitators, in this case Ebay.  Ebay isn't just picking a number out of the sky to charge.  What they are doing is by direction of the state you are in.


mam98031  •  Volunteer Community Member
Message 43 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

Not true as it relates to New Jersey and eBay collecting New Jersey sales tax. I have made three purchases of clothing items in the last two months, and eBay charged me New Jersey sales tax on all three, despite the fact that by New Jersey state law clothing is tax exempt. I contacted eBay and they admitted their sales tax system is NOT able to differentiate between what is taxable and what is tax exempt in New Jersey. They just tax EVERYTHING. They had a script they read from telling me to contact my taxing authority and provide EBay with tax exempt documentation. This is ridiculous, as I am not tax exempt, but only requested that I NOT be taxed on non taxable items. I for one am finished buying on eBay.
Message 44 of 49
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Sales Tax collected, New Jersey?

Me, too! Soooooo done with Ebay!! 95% of my Ebay purchases are clothing items. I've seriously had it up to here with all of Ebay and their practices. I, too, am in NJ. Is Ebay sending all this tax money on "non taxable" items to NJ? NJ is going to get a huge surplus of funds because I, for one, am not going to bother claiming a credit on any purchases on my income tax return. It is just not worth it. So annoying!! As if NJ doesn't tax us enough as it is, Ebay is now sending them a surplus! Ebay should be able to differentiate between what gets taxed and what doesn't. EVERY other online retailer can do it. SMH
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