Why do I have to pay tax from DAZ when no other site charges tax?
DarthD
Posts: 259
I just don't understand why DAZ is the only site that has ever charged me tax.
Daz 3D is part of 
Connect
DAZ Productions, Inc.
7533 S Center View Ct #4664
West Jordan, UT 84084
Licensing Agreement | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | EULA
© 2024 Daz Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Comments
It's the state the company is based in and the state that you live in. Utah is one of 19 or so states that has legislation that specifically requires state taxes be paid on any purchase made over the internet within the state, and if you're going to charge Utah state taxes on items purchased from out of state in Utah, you're going to have to do the inverse or the other states start crying foul. IIRC, there was a period where declaration of the sales tax was up to the individual to report on their own, but that gets really muddled when you have states like Texas that have no state income tax
Of course, while collecting taxes from DAZ is probably a nice little chunk of change, the real targets are companies like Utah-based Overstock.com and Amazon, so if you have a distribution center for a company like that in your state, you're probably going to be hit with an internet sales tax eventually.
Sales tax questions are a big sticky mess...and probably best asked to Sales directly.
I don't think any of us are tax lawyers, so all you'll get are opinions.
There are currently 3 states IIRC we are legally obligated to charge sales tax for. Utah is one of them, Texas is one of them. I can't remember off the top of my head what the other two are.
Contacting sales and complaining isn't going to change the fact that by law we are required to charge sales tax if you live in one of those 3 states. It's just the way it is.
If you think 2 + 2 = 3, I'd guess that one of them would be the state of confusion, :-)
Is Daz located in Texas? I live in Texas and I never pay tax for internet purchases unless the company is in Texas.
The way the state is handling it doesn't necessarily help the state and definitely does not help businesses. I bought a pair of AFR cylinder heads a few years ago for my Corvette. I could have purchased them from a company in Texas but due to the sales tax, it was a lot cheaper to purchase from another stated and pay a little more for shipping. The Texas store even had a lower price, before tax.
3 other states, maybe?
WV will probably be added to that list, soon...a bill to do that is working it's way through the legislature, right now.
If you think 2 + 2 = 3, I'd guess that one of them would be the state of confusion, :-)
That's the one!! Or maybe it was the Great State of Delusion.
We are legally obligated to charge sales tax in Texas. I can't speak for other online stores and why they may or may not be charging sales tax for Texas. However, we are legally obligated to. That's pretty much all I can say.
DAZ is in Utah.
As for the internet sales tax helping the states, while that one lost sale might not have been great for TX or that single merchant, it's more than offset by all the taxes collected on uber-online companies. IIRC, that's nearly $300 million a year just from Amazon to Texas, plus the TX deal with Amazon also included bringing 2500 jobs to the state.
Great, didn't know Amazon was going to start charging tax. If I don't order enough to get free shipping it may be cheaper to just drive to the store and pick it up myself, depending on the item.
Thanks for answering my question. I wasn't complaining, just wondering why.
Er... Amazon's been charging tax in Texas since July of 2012.
Amazon charges sales tax on physical goods shipped to your mailing address. Sales tax is based on the state sales tax rate which may be lower than your local sales tax because of additional county sales taxes.
The last time it was brought up by some individuals in Illinois, it was explained that if DAZ has a presence in a particular state (employee or servers) they are obligated to charge sales tax to those buyers who also reside in that state.
Whether this is still the case is anyone's guess. Tax laws and codes change more often than people change their underwear. At least that's the way it seems sometimes.
Considering how many ways and how many layers and jurisdictions there are, it's a wonder that everyone isn't in trouble over them in some way or another.
I live in California but Amazon has portals here too so there is tax but I signed up for PRIME account and just shop for Prime prices and so that helps alleviate the added tax. I shop there allot so Prime is really worth it to me!
We use Prime also. We do most of our shopping on Amazon. The only time we go to the store here is if to get groceries or we need something now that can't wait a couple days
Is Amazon's tax just on physical goods shipped into the state or do they charge non-Prime members for digital goods like Kindle books?
Er... Amazon's been charging tax in Texas since July of 2012.
No, only on some items, i assume items shipped from Texas. I just verified this with my last three orders - no tax. I do have an order with multiple items where one was taxed, but not all.
Item(s) Subtotal: $6.77
Shipping & Handling: $0.00
-----
Total before tax: $6.77
Sales Tax: $0.00
-----
Total for This Shipment: $6.77
I guess the stuff sold by Amazon Sold by: Amazon.com LLC is taxed. but not items from other places. Not too bad with free shipping though
Yeah, another big thumbs up/plug for Prime here. I signed on back when it was first starting up and now I wonder how I did without it. It actually feels really weird when I buy something these day and don't automatically get second day shipping at no charge and that $2.99 overnight rate has saved my bacon a number of times.
Ironically, the only things that usually work out cheaper locally then using Amazon are paperback books and magazines (using a Barnes & Noble discount membership), but I've pretty much switched over to e-books for the former and went to direct subscriptions for the latter. Toss in the free movies and tv shows, the free books and rentals on the kindle, and the fact that my wife and I can share the account and ship to multiple addresses, and it's really simplified the holidays. I only went out Xmas shopping once last year and even with the UPS issues everything made it to where it was going with a few hours to spare. Next year I may not even leave the house...
Amazon charges the state sales tax rate (which is half the local rate because of added county sales tax) here in NY for physical goods but no sales tax on digital goods like Kindle books, games and videos.
Is Amazon's tax just on physical goods shipped into the state or do they charge non-Prime members for digital goods like Kindle books?
Digital as well, at least for Kindle books and av downloads. At least, that's if you live in Texas, where there's a base 6.25% sales tax. There are states with no sales tax (Oregon, Montanna, Alaska, Delaware and New Hampshire), where you're currently not going to be charged no matter where the product is paid for or shipped from, and another couple of dozen where it depends on how much business an individual company is doing with that particular area. And the real kicker is that there are some states where they DO require that you pay the sales tax but DON'T require the vendor to charge it... rather, you're supposed to report and pay it voluntarily on your own.
Yes, it's just Amazon the company selling it's own products, not Amazon the vendor marketplace. Mind you, the fact that a company isn't charging you tax may not mean that you don't legally owe it, which is where it really gets hard to follow all the rules.
And also exactly what is taxable is also not very clearly defined. Some places digital goods don't count as 'tangible' items, so they won't be taxed.
That works for me with Barnes & Noble because there is one within walking distance, but Amazon does not have any brick and mortar stores that I'm aware of. It's only via the Internet.
Face it, the days of tax-free internet purchases are numbered. It won't be too long (except in states that don't have a sales tax) that everywhere will be charging taxes.
I read an article that there are some states that are thinking up ways to go after people who move away. The logic there is "you lived here and probably voted for more programs, so now you owe us!" I think that article was about income taxes though and not sales tax.
If you live in the US and your tax situation is even a little bit more complex than a baby's teething ring, you probably have some mistakes in a prior federal tax return somewhere along the way.
And the scary thing about the IRS is that you are presumed guilty until YOU prove yourself innocent. And the IRS disobeys written laws and even court orders. It's so powerful that it can be (and has been) used as a political weapon.
That works for me with Barnes & Noble because there is one within walking distance, but Amazon does not have any brick and mortar stores that I'm aware of. It's only via the Internet.
They're not "stores" but Amazon does have a physical presence. Their servers and workers and such don't just fly around in the sky. lol Same with Daz and Utah. It's not a store, but their HQ constitutes a physical presence in the state.
I live in WA state and get taxed left and right because everyone has an HQ here (Microsoft, Valve, Google, Amazon, Adobe, etc). lol
They're not "stores" but Amazon does have a physical presence. Their servers and workers and such don't just fly around in the sky. lol Same with Daz and Utah. It's not a store, but their HQ constitutes a physical presence in the state.
I live in WA state and get taxed left and right because everyone has an HQ here (Microsoft, Valve, Google, Amazon, Adobe, etc). lol
Let me guess, the reason all those companies built their HQ's in WA state was because of lower taxes once upon a time...right?
I don't know as I'm not a native (I'm from AZ), and they were here long before I was.
Once upon a time, maybe. Who really knows anymore? Maybe they just thought that being way up there on the other side of the mountains and just downstairs from Canada, they would just be left alone to their caribou and coffee...