October Roundup: Sales tax laws you need to know

While you focus on your business, we stay on top of legislative and policy changes that can affect your sales tax compliance.

States kicked off the fourth quarter with lots of interesting sales tax news.

And on the fourth day, Minnesota sales tax must be collected.

An out-of-state retailer can conduct business activities in Minnesota for three days without establishing nexus. Stay a fourth day and the free pass is over. Learn more.

Biggest (sales tax) dogs of 2019.

There’s been an enormous amount of change in the world of sales tax since the Wayfair decision. Some of the most impactful new policies took effect this year in California, New York, and Texas. Learn more.

Bitcoin, it’s not for tax payments.

Last fall, the previous Ohio State Treasurer enthusiastically opened a portal that accepted cryptocurrency tax payments. This fall, the current State Treasurer shut it down. Learn more.

Diapers are now exempt in North Carolina.

But maybe not the diapers most parents purchase. Learn more.

Florida tries to tax remote sales. Again.

Florida lawmakers tried and failed to pass an economic nexus law last session. Undaunted, they’re trying again. Learn more.

Kansas vs. Kansas.

The Kansas Department of Revenue is using the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. to enforce an existing provision of the law and tax remote sales. The Kansas Attorney General says the rule is invalid. The department says it is. Oy. Learn more.

Is Halloween candy taxable?

Get the sweet scoop in this state-by-state guide to the taxation of candy. Learn more.

Massachusetts doesn’t need to tax cookies anymore.

The cookie nexus rule that Massachusetts adopted before Wayfair used to serve a purpose. Now that it’s just empty calories for the Bay State, it may be eliminated. Learn more.

Not obvious: the sales tax on detective services in Minnesota.

It might not take a Sherlock Holmes to sort out which detective services are taxable in Minnesota and which are exempt, but it’s certainly not elementary. Learn more.

New York updates economic nexus threshold and marketplace facilitator guidance.

The New York Department of Taxation and Finance has updated some of its guidelines for remote sellers and marketplace providers, but not all. Learn more.

North Carolina could make marketplace facilitators liable for the tax on marketplace sales.

Lawmakers in the Tar Heel State still haven’t agreed on a budget for the fiscal year that started July 1, 2019; a proposed sales tax collection requirement for marketplace facilitators is just one of the casualties. Learn more.

Sometimes you do have to sweat the details.

Not sure if sales tax applies to antiperspirant and deodorant? Read the label. Learn more.

The tax-free days of vapor products are going up in smoke.

Once touted as a healthier alternative to traditional cigarettes and given a break on taxes, vapor products are now under fire and increasingly subject to tax. Learn more.

The vacation is over for marketplaces in Hawaii.

As in many other states, marketplace facilitators will soon have to start collecting and remitting the tax due on their marketplace sales in Hawaii. Learn more.

There’s more than one way to tax a soda.

The Council of the District of Columbia seems to think one sweet beverage tax is better than another. Learn more.

Wayfair leads to expanded corporate net income tax collections in Pennsylvania.

The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue is using the Supreme Court’s decision in Wayfair to require remote businesses to pay corporate net income tax. Furthermore, the Keystone State isn’t the only state moving in this direction. Learn more.

Wisconsin’s marketplace mayhem.

Although Wisconsin’s new marketplace facilitator law doesn’t take effect in 2020, the Wisconsin Department of Revenue website states that remote marketplace providers are required to collect and remit Wisconsin sales tax on behalf of third-party sellers as of October 1, 2018. Learn more.

Automating sales tax compliance helps businesses of all sizes keep compliant with changing sales tax laws in all states. Learn more.