Sales Tax to WA

[capt.steel]

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

P.S. In the future, can I just delete the sales tax that eBay is automatically charging to Buyers in their invoices by just applying to same amount to the discount option at the bottom of the invoice or is that illegal?

[capt.steel]

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

P.S. In the future, can I just delete the sales tax that eBay is automatically charging to Buyers in their invoices by just applying to same amount to the discount option at the bottom of the invoice or is that illegal?

[ohnojoey]

"When a buyer purchases an item on eBay, and the ship to address is one of the above states, (WA) eBay will calculate and add the applicable sales tax at checkout. The buyer will pay both the cost of the item along with the sales tax. eBay will collect and remit the tax.

Sellers are not able to opt out of selling items into the states listed above or opt out of eBay automatically collecting sales tax."

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/taxes-import-charges?id=4121

"In the future, can I just delete the sales tax that eBay is automatically charging to Buyers in their invoices by just applying to same amount to the discount option at the bottom of the invoice or is that illegal?"

Ebay will collect it from the buyer, invoice, no invoice, it doesn't matter. Discount the tax and the invoice will reset to the default tax, I don't think it will let you do that.

[pburn]

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@capt.steel wrote:

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

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You're sending invoices to auction winners? Is that because they've requested an invoice in order to receive a discount on (combined) shipping?

[pburn]

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

[capt.steel]

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@ohnojoey wrote:

"When a buyer purchases an item on eBay, and the ship to address is one of the above states, (WA) eBay will calculate and add the applicable sales tax at checkout. The buyer will pay both the cost of the item along with the sales tax. eBay will collect and remit the tax.

Sellers are not able to opt out of selling items into the states listed above or opt out of eBay automatically collecting sales tax."

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/fees-credits-invoices/taxes-import-charges?id=4121

"In the future, can I just delete the sales tax that eBay is automatically charging to Buyers in their invoices by just applying to same amount to the discount option at the bottom of the invoice or is that illegal?"

Ebay will collect it from the buyer, invoice, no invoice, it doesn't matter. Discount the tax and the invoice will reset to the default tax, I don't think it will let you do that.

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Thanks!  I'm just wondering how a Buyer from this year (also in WA) made a Paypal payment without any tax added onto the total?  According to the Paypal record they only paid the item cost plus the shipping.  This was the person who paid before I could send them an invoice.

Also, are buyers from certain states aware a tax charge will be added on and do they know exactly what they'll be asked to pay beforehand (depending on their maximum bid plus shipping for auctions)?

i.e. Will the sales tax come up on the screen when they enter their bid with the message that tells them that when they bid they agree to purchase the item if they win so they know what the grand total will be with the tax?

[capt.steel]

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@pburn wrote:

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@capt.steel wrote:

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

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You're sending invoices to auction winners? Is that because they've requested an invoice in order to receive a discount on (combined) shipping?

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I usually wait a day or so, and if they haven't paid by then, I send an invoice. 

This is to aid in packing & shipping (avoid multiple trips to the post office).  If I have more than one item to ship out, and can get them packed and ready, then I can mail them all on Monday (as it works out for this week, anyway).

But if I'm waiting for payment on one (or more) items, then I have to stagger my packing & mailing schedules for each item. (I don't pack until I get paid - learned the hard way too many times from too many non-paying bidders not to pack until you get paid.)  Invoices can prompt a Buyer if they forgot to pay for an item in a timely manner.

Are you suggesting I don't send invoices in the future?

[capt.steel]

I went to send an invoice to a Buyer today and see there is tax added automatically onto the total for their state (WA @ 10.09%) 

Sadly this puts the tax charge at almost as much as my shipping charge!

I just sent a similar purchase (a book) to WA in January of this year - the Buyer paid before I could send them an invoice.  When I went to check that Buyer's Paypal payment I noticed there was no sales tax charged.

So does this mean sales tax to WA is only tacked onto a Buyer's total if you send an invoice, but if they just pay directly as soon as the auction is over, they avoid the sales tax?  Should I stop sending invoices?

[pburn]

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@capt.steel wrote:

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Also, are buyers from certain states aware a tax charge will be added on and do they know exactly what they'll be asked to pay beforehand (depending on their maximum bid plus shipping for auctions)?

i.e. Will the sales tax come up on the screen when they enter their bid with the message that tells them that when they bid they agree to purchase the item if they win so they know what the grand total will be with the tax?

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There is already a disclaimer on your listing under the "Shipping and payments" tab.

Taxes

Sales tax may apply when shipping to: IA*, MN*, WA*.

* Tax applies to subtotal + S&H for these states only

The sales tax will not come up on the screen when they enter their bid; however, it will appear on the checkout screen when the winning bidder goes to pay for the item. Just like when I go to a bricks & mortar store and take an item to the checkout counter. The sales tax is not included on the price tag or on the shelf where it's displayed.

[capt.steel]

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@pburn wrote:

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@capt.steel wrote:

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Also, are buyers from certain states aware a tax charge will be added on and do they know exactly what they'll be asked to pay beforehand (depending on their maximum bid plus shipping for auctions)?

i.e. Will the sales tax come up on the screen when they enter their bid with the message that tells them that when they bid they agree to purchase the item if they win so they know what the grand total will be with the tax?

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There is already a disclaimer on your listing under the "Shipping and payments" tab.

Taxes

Sales tax may apply when shipping to: IA*, MN*, WA*.

* Tax applies to subtotal + S&H for these states only

The sales tax will not come up on the screen when they enter their bid; however, it will appear on the checkout screen when the winning bidder goes to pay for the item. Just like when I go to a bricks & mortar store and take an item to the checkout counter. The sales tax is not included on the price tag or on the shelf where it's displayed.

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Thanks so much.

So I'm still trying to figure out why another customer from WA who paid this year after eBay instituted the changes didn't seem to be charged sales tax - unless Paypal doesn't list the tax in their data for the Seller to see? 

I would think since Paypal simply handles monetary transactions, then the entirety of the money the Buyer paid (including taxes) would be included in their record.

[thevintagesilvershop]

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@capt.steel wrote:

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@pburn wrote:

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@capt.steel wrote:

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Also, are buyers from certain states aware a tax charge will be added on and do they know exactly what they'll be asked to pay beforehand (depending on their maximum bid plus shipping for auctions)?

i.e. Will the sales tax come up on the screen when they enter their bid with the message that tells them that when they bid they agree to purchase the item if they win so they know what the grand total will be with the tax?

---

There is already a disclaimer on your listing under the "Shipping and payments" tab.

Taxes

Sales tax may apply when shipping to: IA*, MN*, WA*.

* Tax applies to subtotal + S&H for these states only

The sales tax will not come up on the screen when they enter their bid; however, it will appear on the checkout screen when the winning bidder goes to pay for the item. Just like when I go to a bricks & mortar store and take an item to the checkout counter. The sales tax is not included on the price tag or on the shelf where it's displayed.

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Thanks so much.

So I'm still trying to figure out why another customer from WA who paid this year after eBay instituted the changes didn't seem to be charged sales tax - unless Paypal doesn't list the tax in their data for the Seller to see? 

I would think since Paypal simply handles monetary transactions, then the entirety of the money the Buyer paid (including taxes) would be included in their record.

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Since you didn't receive the tax $, Paypal won't show it.  It will only show on the Ebay invoice or packing slip.  You keep asking if you don't send an invoice, will the buyer not be charged the tax or can you remove it via an adjustment.  Don't do it.  Ebay is required by STATE law to do this, don't screw with it. 

[lacemaker3]

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@capt.steel wrote:

...

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Thanks!  I'm just wondering how a Buyer from this year (also in WA) made a Paypal payment without any tax added onto the total?  According to the Paypal record they only paid the item cost plus the shipping.  This was the person who paid before I could send them an invoice.

Also, are buyers from certain states aware a tax charge will be added on and do they know exactly what they'll be asked to pay beforehand (depending on their maximum bid plus shipping for auctions)?

i.e. Will the sales tax come up on the screen when they enter their bid with the message that tells them that when they bid they agree to purchase the item if they win so they know what the grand total will be with the tax?

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Just to make sure the earlier answers are clear.

Your earlier buyer was charged the sales tax, but it was charged by and paid to eBay, not to you. So you didn't see it then, and you won't see it in the payment you receive from your current buyer either.

The payment you receive in PayPal only includes the payment that was made to you. The buyer was also charged for the sales tax, which shows as a separate transaction in the buyer's PayPal, and that payment was sent to eBay, so you don't see it (or anything about it).

The amount of the sales tax is shown on the checkout page, before the buyer commits to buy the item. They can see exactly how much they will be charged, which is the correct amount for the type of item they are buying (based on the item's category) and the buyer's shipping location. The buyer sees the total amount, for price plus shipping (if any) plus sales tax, and that's how much they pay when they buy the item. Then, when the buyer pays, PayPal divides the payment up and sends the seller's part to the seller's account, and the sales tax to eBay's account.

You don't need to send invoices to buyers most of the time, and you shouldn't do it except in unusual situations. Only if you need to lower the shipping cost for some reason, or combine shipping. Otherwise, you should set the listing up correctly, so the shipping cost is calculated correctly, and then let the eBay process handle it. 

Definitely for buyers in WA, you should NOT be sending invoices or changing the shipping costs if you can help it, because WA charges sales tax on shipping. So if you change the shipping costs, then things can get very confusing. I believe the invoice that is actually sent recalculates the sales tax if you change the shipping cost, but it has been reported that it doesn't show that to the seller, only to the buyer. I don't know if that has been changed recently.

[mam98031]

I think most if not all your questions were answered by other members, but just in case you didn't know, you need to make sure you track these sales even though you are not responsible for collecting or remitting the sales tax any longer.

When you go to report your sales to the Dept of Revenue for the State of WA, you are require to report your gross retail sales on the report.  You can then take a deduction for the amount of sales that EBay [or other website] collected and remitted sales tax to the state of WA.  So your net amount may be zero, but you still need to report these numbers to the state of WA.  

You nor any of us have any control whatsoever over the percentage of sales tax Ebay is charging for any given state.  That is between ebay and those states.  The states are mandating what Ebay should charge.

Make sure you read or at lease review the emails Ebay sends you.  Important information may be missed if you don't, which is what likely happened to you here.

[mam98031]

You don't see the sales tax on the PP payment because the money for the sales tax did NOT come to you, it went directly to Ebay.  That is why you don't see it on your PP account.

[buyselljack2016]

As others stated, not seen in PayPay because not paid to seller.

Here is what I see when tax has been collected.

[lilbama911]

The 10.09% sales tax for WA state seems a bit high since WA state sales tax is 6.5%.   After some checking, depending on where the buyer lives the county and city where the buyer lives can add an additional local sales tax of up to 3.1% sales tax for a maximum possible combined sales tax of 9.6%.

As you can see your buyer exceeds this limit.  The question is why?

[thevintagesilvershop]

I actually get 8.2% (3.20/39).  How'd you do your calc?

PS:  Referring to post 12

[mam98031]

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@lilbama911 wrote:

The 10.09% sales tax for WA state seems a bit high since WA state sales tax is 6.5%.   After some checking, depending on where the buyer lives the county and city where the buyer lives can add an additional local sales tax of up to 3.1% sales tax for a maximum possible combined sales tax of 9.6%.

As you can see your buyer exceeds this limit.  The question is why?

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Washington ST is NOT 6.5%.  You are correct, it varies all over the state.  The 6.5% would be among the lowest in the state, less populated areas.  The higher the population areas the higher the taxes it seems.  They go as high as 11 point something in WA.

It may be an average they are charging.  But I'm comfortable in considering it is the rate the state has directed them to collect as it would not serve them any good purpose to do this the wrong way.  Penalties and legal action would not benefit Ebay in any way.  

While I may be bias, IMHO the state of WA has one of the best Attorney Generals around.  That team is pretty darn good at looking out for the citizens of the state.