The Great Sales Tax debate part deux…
- Small businesses shouldn’t need a lawyer like for 50 State tax problems.
- The removal of physical presence is not a bad thing for Sellers
- Physical presence is no longer a barrier to taxation that large corporates were using to claim exemption from tax
- The Courts were sick of it and are throwing it out
- It seemed constitutionally sound with respect to large businesses, it didn’t say it’s the same for small businesses
The States need to Adapt
- Burdensome taxes, a single Mom operating out of a kitchen table exercise having to file the same amount of tax paperwork as Walmart and it’s a burden and undue as the States can fix it
- The technology is there to fix it
- Ability to make Amazon collect tax is there
- The fact that States are so dysfunctional is there and not willing to
- They need to adapt with business and the economy not the other way around
Stifling Entrepreneurship
- Don’t want to start if I have to shell out £100k tax bill as soon as I hit FBA
- Attack on free-will for Entrepreneurs to start up
- Most employment comes from small businesses
- Stifling creativity and innovation through this sales tax
- Also, this removes a lot of Amazon small sellers as this discourages people joining the FBA world
Weed out some Sellers
- There could be a cleaning house effect that Amazon aren’t opposed to
- Consolidation of the market place is what they are doing
- Looking to lose ones steadily over time but losing loads at once would crater their revenues
Buyers will pay more
- For products that are Prime.
- The need to suppress price has gone away for Amazon
- Eventually all the States will collect Sales Tax
- Amazon has an interest in selling products that are Tax Free
- Where do Tax Sensitive Tax Shoppers go now after Wayfair? They go to Amazon
Chinese Sellers
- Let’s say States go after individual lawyers and Amazon gets it’s slate cleaned
- States push out all the domestic sellers and leaves the Chinese Sellers left
- By the time a sales tax assessment comes through the Chinese Seller will have cleared their stock and moved on
- UK VAT is complicated and open season currently
- Australia immediately patched their laws to tax Amazon sales when they came in
- If Amazon doesn’t have the resources to find the duplicate accounts and Sellers then how will the States do it?
Amnesty a Year Ago
- 20 States got together and falsely accused all Sellers on Amazon
- But if you came forward and signed up they would waive your back-tax on Sales
- This was a one-time gift that the States give
- But you are also being falsely accused of something you didn’t do
- Likely illegal as unfair tax enforcement
- Aiming to get Sellers to register going forwards
- Wisconsin is going after Walmart – saying Walmart is a Retailer (but not saying Amazon is)
- The Wayfair case isn’t the case about Amazon FBA
- Remember States thought you had nexus before Wayfair, the decision would not have helped FBA Sellers
What should you do?
- When you get a letter
- Tell my clients – you can’t afford to bring this case
- We want to crowdfund this defence – if we win then we all win
- Declaratory judgement – States being told by the courts that they can’t go after this
- This is an unnecessary burden – an argument that Wayfair really didn’t have
- Could use more contributions towards this effort
- Reach out at onlinemerchantsguild.org
- Click ‘join now’ and you can join up
- See the FAQ for info
- Every dollar that comes in goes to pay Lawyers to get the case out