Determining where to remit and pay sales tax in each state isn’t always the easiest job. Since states are fully responsible for all their own sales tax, every state handles things a bit differently and they have different online or paper systems for business owners to remit sales tax payments. Most states have similar processes but there are a few states that have unique ways of collecting sales tax. States shown in orange on the infographic below have systems that are a bit odd when it comes to collecting sales tax. Take Arizona for example. If you’re doing business in Arizona, you might need to file with both the state and a local municipality.
Some local option taxes are collected by the state and distributed to local tax jurisdictions but other local option taxes aren’t. Local tax jurisdictions can opt out of the state’s program and collect their own sales taxes. If you’re doing business in Arizona, be sure you’re sending your sales tax to the right authority. Local option taxes are typically the reasons behind tricky sales tax filing processes but it doesn’t need to be a game of hunt-and-peck. Having strong sales tax filing software on your side makes all the difference. Think of it this way—instead of your business spending time hunting through sales tax publications to determine where you need to file, a team of sales tax professionals has already done that and know exactly what you need to do.
With the right sales tax filing software, all you need to do is click a button. When looking at sales tax filing software options, look for software that allows you to file as much as possible through the software itself or that connects you directly with the appropriate e-file or e-form service if available. Having computers on your side that already know where you need to file will cut down on the time you spend filing sales tax every period. If you’re spending too much time hunting down sales tax rules, contact us today to see how our software can help.
