Monday, April 17, 2006
States Push to Tax Internet Shopping
Posted by Ed Hansberry in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 03:00 PM
http://news.com.com/States+push+to+tax+Net+shopping/2100-1028-6060450.html?part=dht&tag=nl.e433
"Online purchases from sites like Amazon.com and eBay may seem to arrive in a state of untaxed bliss. But the law actually requires shoppers to pay their own state's sales tax rate--the concept is called a "use tax"--and voluntarily cough up the exact amount owed each year at tax time."
New York state has gone so far as to add a line on the income tax return to report your amount of online purchases so you can easily calculate the amount of taxes owed. If you are audited and you under-report, penalties and interest could be 300% of the amount you would have had to pay if you had been honest.
Seems the benefit of online buying in the US is an illusion that is coming to an end as bureaucrats everywhere look to take more money out of your wallet and spend it on whatever social program they deem important at the time. :evil:
"Online purchases from sites like Amazon.com and eBay may seem to arrive in a state of untaxed bliss. But the law actually requires shoppers to pay their own state's sales tax rate--the concept is called a "use tax"--and voluntarily cough up the exact amount owed each year at tax time."
New York state has gone so far as to add a line on the income tax return to report your amount of online purchases so you can easily calculate the amount of taxes owed. If you are audited and you under-report, penalties and interest could be 300% of the amount you would have had to pay if you had been honest.
Seems the benefit of online buying in the US is an illusion that is coming to an end as bureaucrats everywhere look to take more money out of your wallet and spend it on whatever social program they deem important at the time. :evil:
