Sales taxes coming to the Internet

ToshiroOC · Feb 7, 2003, 05:59 AM

Several large retailers this week began collecting sales tax on Internet purchases.

The move arose from an agreement among about 38 states and the District of Columbia that went into effect this week. The deal was struck last fall after states complained that they've been losing billions of dollars in tax revenue as online sales rise.

In exchange for signing onto the agreement, the retailers will not be held liable for back sales taxes they may owe, according to people familiar with the agreement.

Those involved would not say which retailers agreed to the deal, but retailers including Toys "R" Us, Wal-Mart and Target recently posted new policies on sales taxes. Amazon.com, which has partnerships with Target.com, MarshallFields.com and Mervyns.com to sell items online, notified customers of the change through a posting on its site.

"Effective February 2, 2003, target.direct and marshallfields.direct will be required to charge sales tax in all states other than Alaska, Hawaii, and Vermont. The new collection requirements will apply to all orders shipped and charged on or after February 2, 2003, even if your order was placed prior to this date," the posting said.

Many online retailers have avoided charging customers sales tax because companies are not required to do so unless they have a physical presence in a customer's state. Americans are supposed to pay taxes voluntarily on items they order from Web sites and mail-order companies that are located outside the state in which they live. But very few people do.

--By Lisa M. Bowman, source: news.com (CNET)

Article can be read here.

jkayca2 · Feb 7, 2003, 01:35 PM

More taxes for the Americans. Just another step in Jean Chretien's master plan to have the USA become Canada's 11th province.

DriveEuro · Feb 7, 2003, 03:06 PM

Geez, I don't wanna pay taxes on stuff. Then it'll be closer to retail prices........ ****

~~tenndevil~~ · Feb 8, 2003, 09:56 AM

Quote:

"Effective February 2, 2003, target.direct and marshallfields.direct will be required to charge sales tax in all states other than Alaska, Hawaii, and Vermont. The new collection requirements will apply to all orders shipped and charged on or after February 2, 2003, even if your order was placed prior to this date," the posting said.

What I don't understand is, Colorado refused to jump on this bandwagon, and is not participating so how can they charge state sales tax outside the state, where is the money going since Colorado doesn't want any part of this? Or states like Oregon, Montana, and New Hampshire that don't even have a state sales tax.

ToshiroOC · Feb 8, 2003, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jkayca2
More taxes for the Americans. Just another step in Jean Chretien's master plan to have the USA become Canada's 11th province.

Whats Canada?

jkayca2 · Feb 9, 2003, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ToshiroOC
Whats Canada?

We're part of George W's Axis of Evil

Feb 7, 2003, 05:59 AM	#1
ToshiroOC Unbiased. Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 4,812 Rep Power: 0	Sales taxes coming to the Internet Several large retailers this week began collecting sales tax on Internet purchases. The move arose from an agreement among about 38 states and the District of Columbia that went into effect this week. The deal was struck last fall after states complained that they've been losing billions of dollars in tax revenue as online sales rise. In exchange for signing onto the agreement, the retailers will not be held liable for back sales taxes they may owe, according to people familiar with the agreement. Those involved would not say which retailers agreed to the deal, but retailers including Toys "R" Us, Wal-Mart and Target recently posted new policies on sales taxes. Amazon.com, which has partnerships with Target.com, MarshallFields.com and Mervyns.com to sell items online, notified customers of the change through a posting on its site. "Effective February 2, 2003, target.direct and marshallfields.direct will be required to charge sales tax in all states other than Alaska, Hawaii, and Vermont. The new collection requirements will apply to all orders shipped and charged on or after February 2, 2003, even if your order was placed prior to this date," the posting said. Many online retailers have avoided charging customers sales tax because companies are not required to do so unless they have a physical presence in a customer's state. Americans are supposed to pay taxes voluntarily on items they order from Web sites and mail-order companies that are located outside the state in which they live. But very few people do. --By Lisa M. Bowman, source: news.com (CNET) Article can be read here.

Feb 7, 2003, 01:35 PM	#2
jkayca2 DriverHeaven Addict Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 379 Rep Power: 0	More taxes for the Americans. Just another step in Jean Chretien's master plan to have the USA become Canada's 11th province. __________________ [color=Blue]PNY Verto GeFORCE 6800GT AGP 256MB DDR3 - 1 GHz Win XP Pro (SP 2) - Directx 9.0c Intel P4 2.8C GHz - Abit IS7 Mobo 2x512 + 2x1024 MB PC 3200 DDR WD 74 GB Raptor + WD 120 GB HD with 8 MB Cache Hercules Gamesurround Fortissmo 7.1 Logitech Z5500 Speaker System Leadtek WinFast TV 2000 XP Deluxe LG GSA-4160B DVD Burner Logitech LX700 Keyb, mouse combo Mitsubishi DiamondPro 2070SB 22" CRT[/color]

Feb 7, 2003, 03:06 PM	#3
DriveEuro HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Gurnee Illinois Posts: 4,677 Rep Power: 0	Geez, I don't wanna pay taxes on stuff. Then it'll be closer to retail prices........ **** __________________ [color=orange]ASUS P4P800 Deluxe [color=black]-[/color] 2.4C --> 3300mhz [color=black]-[/color] Mushkin PC3200 at 220 5-2-2-2 (cpu limited) [color=black]-[/color] BBAti 9800Pro at 430/375 [/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]01[/color] [color=black]3[/color][color=gray]D[/color]M[color=black]a[/color][color=gray]r[/color]k[color=yellow]03[/color] 16001200 12801024