New Ebay Tax Policy - I'm buying my gear here in future

Fenwoodian · 10-24-2019, 05:46 PM

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Each week I buy and sell many items on Ebay. Have for years.

Tonight I sold a $135 piece of camera gear to a California buyer. When I went to sent him the invoice, to my surprise I saw that Ebay had added 7.75% California state sales tax! That had never happened before with any sale I'd ever made to any state. I tried to remove the sales tax and I found that it could not be done.

Just another reason to sell and buy gear here on the Pentax Forums.
.

vonBaloney · 10-24-2019, 06:05 PM - **2 Likes**

Originally posted by Fenwoodian

.
Each week I buy and sell many items on Ebay. Have for years.

Tonight I sold a $135 piece of camera gear to a California buyer. When I went to sent him the invoice, to my surprise I saw that Ebay had added 7.75% California state sales tax! That had never happened before with any sale I'd ever made to any state. I tried to remove the sales tax and I found that it could not be done.

Just another reason to sell and buy gear here on the Pentax Forums.
.

New state tax laws on internet purchases taking effect in many states in Oct and November. Ebay just complying with the law in this case....

Snapppy · 10-24-2019, 06:10 PM - **1 Like**

Yeah, I'm bummed about it too

It's been slowly taking effect over lots of e-retailers, and eBay was one of the last for me that didn't charge sales tax. Just got to factor it in now when I buy things, just like everything else I guess. Though I wish it didn't apply to used items, it's not like a retailer selling their grandfathers old spotmatic, that's just like a garage sale in my mind. But I don't understand the laws/reasoning very well, just comply to them

**Rondec** · 10-24-2019, 06:13 PM

I don't totally understand it. That is, why sales tax is applied to sales of used goods between private parties.

**aslyfox** · 10-25-2019, 05:01 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Snapppy

Yeah, I'm bummed about it too

It's been slowly taking effect over lots of e-retailers, and eBay was one of the last for me that didn't charge sales tax. Just got to factor it in now when I buy things, just like everything else I guess. Though I wish it didn't apply to used items, it's not like a retailer selling their grandfathers old spotmatic, that's just like a garage sale in my mind. But I don't understand the laws/reasoning very well, just comply to them

some ebay sellers are not like the folks selling occasionally at a garage sale

they sell so much they are a business

any way, some one has to pay the tax and EBAY isn't going to so guess who does

**rogerstg** · 10-25-2019, 10:46 AM

Ebay is simply collecting and remitting the tax that people were legally obligated to pay anyway. There is no new tax, just fewer tax cheats.

vonBaloney · 10-25-2019, 10:48 AM

Originally posted by rogerstg

Ebay is simply collecting and remitting the tax that people were legally obligated to pay anyway. There is no new tax, just fewer tax cheats.

There is actually a bunch of new tax. Many states becoming looser about the definition of whether a sale requires it or not.

**rogerstg** · 10-25-2019, 11:18 AM

Originally posted by vonBaloney

There is actually a bunch of new tax. Many states becoming looser about the definition of whether a sale requires it or not.

Not really. States used to be prohibited from forcing out of state vendors from collecting and remitting sales tax due to US Supreme Court decisions in 1992 in Quill v. North Dakota and 1967 in National Bellas Hess. If a vendor did not collect and remit the tax, the purchaser was still legally required to pay the state an equivalent "use" tax.

That changed in 2018 with the USSC decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair which ruled that states can mandate that businesses without a physical presence in a state with more than 200 transactions or $100,000 in-state sales collect and remit sales taxes on transactions in the state.

The result is simply a way to collect what's been due all along.

Vmax911 · 10-25-2019, 11:29 AM

It would have been nice for ebay to notify users exactly how they were going to implement the sales tax.

A couple of weeks ago a made an ebay purchase that was several hundred dollars. Shortly after I got a message from paypal warning of potential unauthorized charges in the amount of $36, to which I responded "1" (an automated system) as I did not make a purchase for $36. a week later the seller contacts me, saying the payment has been disputed. Long story short, the $36 was actually the ebay sales tax. I never got any notification regarding the $600+ but the whole thing was reversed. And of course no way to respond or call either Paypal or eBay to clarify, just had to wait it out until the robots fixed it. I felt bad for the seller having to wait for the funds when the item was already delivered.

**aslyfox** · 10-25-2019, 11:38 AM - **1 Like**

well there was this announcement by Ebay on October 1

New Internet Sales Tax changes that impact you - The eBay Community

not sure when this was issued ( and it is directed to sellers )

Tax Information

10-24-2019, 05:46 PM	#1
Fenwoodian Pentaxian Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,874	New Ebay Tax Policy - I'm buying my gear here in future Staff note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means Pentax Forums may earn a small commission if a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. If you would like to support the forum directly, you may also make a donation here. . Each week I buy and sell many items on Ebay. Have for years. Tonight I sold a $135 piece of camera gear to a California buyer. When I went to sent him the invoice, to my surprise I saw that Ebay had added 7.75% California state sales tax! That had never happened before with any sale I'd ever made to any state. I tried to remove the sales tax and I found that it could not be done. Just another reason to sell and buy gear here on the Pentax Forums. .

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10-24-2019, 06:05 PM - 2 Likes	#2
vonBaloney Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Albuquerque, NM Posts: 6,029	Originally posted by Fenwoodian . Each week I buy and sell many items on Ebay. Have for years. Tonight I sold a $135 piece of camera gear to a California buyer. When I went to sent him the invoice, to my surprise I saw that Ebay had added 7.75% California state sales tax! That had never happened before with any sale I'd ever made to any state. I tried to remove the sales tax and I found that it could not be done. Just another reason to sell and buy gear here on the Pentax Forums. . New state tax laws on internet purchases taking effect in many states in Oct and November. Ebay just complying with the law in this case....

10-24-2019, 06:10 PM - 1 Like	#3
Snapppy Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2011 Photos: Albums Posts: 485	Yeah, I'm bummed about it too It's been slowly taking effect over lots of e-retailers, and eBay was one of the last for me that didn't charge sales tax. Just got to factor it in now when I buy things, just like everything else I guess. Though I wish it didn't apply to used items, it's not like a retailer selling their grandfathers old spotmatic, that's just like a garage sale in my mind. But I don't understand the laws/reasoning very well, just comply to them

10-24-2019, 06:13 PM	#4
Rondec Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Gladys, Virginia Photos: Gallery Posts: 27,650	I don't totally understand it. That is, why sales tax is applied to sales of used goods between private parties.

10-25-2019, 05:01 AM - 1 Like	#5
aslyfox Seeker of Knowledge Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Topeka, Kansas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 24,581	Originally posted by Snapppy Yeah, I'm bummed about it too It's been slowly taking effect over lots of e-retailers, and eBay was one of the last for me that didn't charge sales tax. Just got to factor it in now when I buy things, just like everything else I guess. Though I wish it didn't apply to used items, it's not like a retailer selling their grandfathers old spotmatic, that's just like a garage sale in my mind. But I don't understand the laws/reasoning very well, just comply to them some ebay sellers are not like the folks selling occasionally at a garage sale they sell so much they are a business any way, some one has to pay the tax and EBAY isn't going to so guess who does

10-25-2019, 10:46 AM	#6
rogerstg Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Rhode Island Photos: Albums Posts: 1,168	Ebay is simply collecting and remitting the tax that people were legally obligated to pay anyway. There is no new tax, just fewer tax cheats.

10-25-2019, 10:48 AM	#7
vonBaloney Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Albuquerque, NM Posts: 6,029	Originally posted by rogerstg Ebay is simply collecting and remitting the tax that people were legally obligated to pay anyway. There is no new tax, just fewer tax cheats. There is actually a bunch of new tax. Many states becoming looser about the definition of whether a sale requires it or not.

10-25-2019, 11:18 AM	#8
rogerstg Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Rhode Island Photos: Albums Posts: 1,168	Originally posted by vonBaloney There is actually a bunch of new tax. Many states becoming looser about the definition of whether a sale requires it or not. Not really. States used to be prohibited from forcing out of state vendors from collecting and remitting sales tax due to US Supreme Court decisions in 1992 in Quill v. North Dakota and 1967 in National Bellas Hess. If a vendor did not collect and remit the tax, the purchaser was still legally required to pay the state an equivalent "use" tax. That changed in 2018 with the USSC decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair which ruled that states can mandate that businesses without a physical presence in a state with more than 200 transactions or $100,000 in-state sales collect and remit sales taxes on transactions in the state. The result is simply a way to collect what's been due all along.

10-25-2019, 11:29 AM	#9
Vmax911 Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: ABQ Photos: Gallery Posts: 826	It would have been nice for ebay to notify users exactly how they were going to implement the sales tax. A couple of weeks ago a made an ebay purchase that was several hundred dollars. Shortly after I got a message from paypal warning of potential unauthorized charges in the amount of $36, to which I responded "1" (an automated system) as I did not make a purchase for $36. a week later the seller contacts me, saying the payment has been disputed. Long story short, the $36 was actually the ebay sales tax. I never got any notification regarding the $600+ but the whole thing was reversed. And of course no way to respond or call either Paypal or eBay to clarify, just had to wait it out until the robots fixed it. I felt bad for the seller having to wait for the funds when the item was already delivered.

10-25-2019, 11:38 AM - 1 Like	#10
aslyfox Seeker of Knowledge Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Topeka, Kansas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 24,581	well there was this announcement by Ebay on October 1 New Internet Sales Tax changes that impact you - The eBay Community not sure when this was issued ( and it is directed to sellers ) Tax Information

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