Is “use tax” different than sales tax?
Sales tax is a levy placed by states on goods or services purchased from a business that has a physical presence in the same state as the consumer. Use tax is a compensating tax owed when retail sales tax was due, but was not paid at the time of sale. This can occur when items are purchased by mail or over the Internet and the out-of state business is not registered to collect sales tax. Use tax may also be owed by businesses that use items from inventory and do not pay the sales tax. Use tax is the customer’s responsibility to pay, but is increasingly being collected by vendors on their behalf.
