Why don all out-of-state businesses collect use tax for other states?
A. If an out-of-state retail business has a physical presence such as a store, warehouse, or sales staff in -state, it is required by law to register and collect state tax. Mail-order companies and others who actively solicit orders in-state but lack physical presence in the state are not currently required to collect state tax. Businesses say collecting tax for 50 states, almost all with different tax laws, would be costly and time consuming. When tax is not collected it does not mean that no tax is owed. The consumer is expected to report and pay Consumer Use Tax owed to the state for goods purchased and received from out of state if the out-of-state business does not collect it. In addition, businesses surreptitiously use this policy as a sales tool to “save you money” by not paying tax. You probably have experienced when shopping in person in another state you have to pay the local sales tax or have the merchandise sent. In many cases the postage and handling fee are higher than th
