In NYC is there sales tax on services like computer / cell phone repair?
According to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, your service would appear to be exempt from taxes.  However, if you are charging for tangible items, those would incur a sales tax.
"Tax is often calculated per item.  Especially in the days of the internet, some items are taxable and some aren't, depending on the item and your nexus.  I would recommend calculating and storing tax with each item, to account for these subtle differences. EDIT: Not sure why this was downvoted, if you don't believe me, you can always check with Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_468512_calculated?nodeId=468512#calculated I think they know what they're talking about. FINAL UPDATE: Now, if someone goes to your site, and buys something from your business (in California) and the shipping address for the product is Nevada, then taxes do not have to be collected.  If they have a billing address in California, and a shipping address in Nevada, and the goods are shipping to Nevada, you do not have to declare tax. If you have a mixture of tangible (computer, mouse, keyboard) and intangible assets (warranty) in a cart, and the shipping address is in California, you charge tax on the tangible assets, but NOT on the intangible assets. Yes, you can charge tax on the whole order.  Yes for most businesses that's ""Good enough"", but I'm not trying to provide the ""good enough"" solution, I'm simply telling you how very large businesses run and operate.  As I've mentioned, I've done several tax integrations using software called Sabrix (Google if you've not heard of it), and have done those integrations for companies like the BBC and Corbis (owned and operated by Bill Gates). Take it or leave it, but the correct way to charge taxes, especially given the complex tax laws of the US and internationally, is to charge per item.  If you just need the ""good enough"" approach, feel free to calculate it by total. Some additional reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxation_of_Digital_Goods Another possible federal limitation on Internet taxation is the United States Supreme Court case, Quill Corp. v. North Dakota, 504 U.S. 298 (1992),[6] which held that under the dormant commerce clause, goods purchased through mail order cannot be subject to a state’s sales tax unless the vendor has a substantial nexus with the state levying the tax.  In 1997, the federal government decided to limit taxation of Internet activity for a period of time. The Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA) prohibits taxes on Internet access, which is defined as a service that allows users access to content, information, email or other services offered over the Internet and may include access to proprietary content, information, and other services as part of a package offered to customers. The Act has exceptions for taxes levied before the statute was written and for sales taxes on online purchases of physical goods." "In the US service animals are treated like durable medical equipment from a tax POV, and some expenses can be deducted. Likewise, expenses associated with working animals are business or hobby expenses than can be deducted to a certain extent.  But pets, no. Legally they are ""chattels"" -- property that can move. Generally speaking, you can't deduct the cost of maintaining your belongings." Not sure if serious or not, but i'll bite. First of all the service you are purchasing is the access to credit card, which runs on a network supplied by financial institutions. Secondly credit card is an optional fee, taxes are mandatory (unless you are a crook). As the article says, selling warranties &amp; one on one tutorials is a benchmark for individual sales ability.  I don't know about Prada, but yes - many upscale department stores do still offer commission. And just about *every* store has something to upsell you on.  I don't mean to debate the merits of a commission-based sales system; I'm just pointing out that the competition (Sprint/Verizon) use one. And pay better as a result. I am a very light TurboTax user and have expensed a laptop in the past (since it was used exclusively for work) and used the itemized deduction there and has no issues.  Just not sure if there was a limit or anything of note to realize ahead of time.  Thanks! "I was just reading Consumer Reports' December 2009 issue.  The issue's focus is electronics, and there was a small section on extended warranties in the ""Best electronics"" article.  Here's what they said: Extended warranties still aren't   worth buying Seven in 10   respondents to our survey on buying   major electronics reported they were   pitched an extended warrranty.    However hard they're sold, extended   warranties are generally bad   investments.  Most electronics   products won't need a repair,   especially if you choose brands that   have fared better than others in the   reliability ratings we include in this   section.  In the unlikely event they   break, other Consumer Reports survey   data has shown,  the average repair   bill is often comparable with the cost   of a warranty. However, buying   a plan that includes accidental damage   might be worth considering for a   laptop or netbook that you'll use a   lot on the go.  And buying a computer   warranty that extends tech support,   too, might make sense if you or a gift   recipient could use a lot of   hand-holding. [...] Paying   with your credit card might   automatically double the   manufacturers' warranty and offer   other benefits at no extra cost   [...] Seven in 10   respondents to our survey on buying   major electronics reported they were   pitched an extended warrranty.    However hard they're sold, extended   warranties are generally bad   investments.  Most electronics   products won't need a repair,   especially if you choose brands that   have fared better than others in the   reliability ratings we include in this   section.  In the unlikely event they   break, other Consumer Reports survey   data has shown,  the average repair   bill is often comparable with the cost   of a warranty. However, buying   a plan that includes accidental damage   might be worth considering for a   laptop or netbook that you'll use a   lot on the go.  And buying a computer   warranty that extends tech support,   too, might make sense if you or a gift   recipient could use a lot of   hand-holding. [...] Paying   with your credit card might   automatically double the   manufacturers' warranty and offer   other benefits at no extra cost   [...] BTW, I like Consumer Reports and I am a long-time subscriber.  Check them out if you haven't before." Im still dealing with a $1,000 laptop i bought from them that stopped working after 6 months. They replaced the mobo and now it BSODs every five mimutes. I have four service orders, three phone calls, and a web chat related to it, and they want me to file a lemon law document for a replacement. Which has to be done at the store i bought it from, with a copy of the service record that the store manager is responsible for obtaining. Because thats gonna happen. "Payment gateways such as Square do not normally withhold tax. It is up to you to pay the appropriate tax at tax time. That having been said, Square does report your payments to the IRS on a form 1099-K if your payments are large enough. According to Square, you'll get a 1099-K from them if your total payments for the year add up to $20,000 AND more than 200 transactions.  Whether or not they report on a 1099-K, you are required to pay the appropriate taxes on your income.  So now the question becomes, ""Do I have to pay income tax on the proceeds from my garage sale?"" And the answer to that question is usually not. When you sell something that you previously purchased, if you sell it for more than you paid for it, you have a capital gain and need to pay tax on that. However, generally you sell things in a garage sale at a loss, meaning that there is no tax due.  If you make more than $20,000 at your garage sale and the IRS gets a 1099-K, the IRS might be curious as to how you did that with no capital gain. So if you sell any big ticket items (a bulldozer, for example), you should keep a record of what you paid for it, so you can show the loss to the IRS in the event of an audit." Amazon and other online retailers actually now support bipartisan legislation to level the playing field regarding online sales taxes.  Value Added Taxes (not sales taxes in the typical sense) are the way to go, as they are much more difficult to evade and can't be sheltered via the Cayman Islands.  They can easily be made progressive through the use of rebates to lower income individuals.  There is a reason it is in place in over 130 countries. "I suppose it is on the surface, when you look at the cost of that indivdual item to your individual doorstep.  But one most consider the efficiency of the entire *system*.  While one item may be a chore, the UPS driver is really an online shopping delivery man.  Courier companies have developed very efficient networks of delivery.  Vastly more efficient than the net sum of the chaotic weekend chore runs that we all do, heading from store to store accross the city.  I know i've switched over to online shopping almost exclusively to avoid that. I'd rather wait a few days and have whatever i need delivered to home or work than waste one of my week days ""running around"".  I know that doesn't sound like much of a point, but consider the effect if a significant percentage of the population began to utilize online shopping.  Replacing the chaotic hordes of individuals running around all week, with an efficient delivery system.  The infrastructure savings would be likely be significant, and quality of life would be improved for most with less errands to be running.  It would be interesting if that could be quantified and compared to what the income from a state sales tax would bring." Yeah, but they have a price match policy; have them price match themselves or go home and order it online.  Or hell, use your smart phone on their free wifi to place the order so the sales person doesn't get credit for the sale and can't harass you for a warranty. Summarized article: The Department of Commerce reported that retail sales increased 1.1% in September, exceeding analysts' expectations.  The biggest jump in consumer spending came from car sales, gasoline and electronics. Electronic sales jumped 4.5%, likely due to the debut of Apple's iPhone 5. Additionally, higher gas prices led to 2.5% increase in spending at gas stations.   The latest report suggests the economy is expanding as consumer spending drives about 2/3 of the US economy.   Other data showed manufacturing activity in New York state shrank for the third straight month as US manufacturers feel the effects of a slowing global economy.   Shares rose and yields on government debt increased as the retail sales report bolstered investor sentiment.  * For more summarized news, subscribe to the [/r/SkimThat](http://www.reddit.com/r/SkimThat) subreddit Yeah, this was a big deal with hotels jamming cell signals to force people to buy their wi-fi. Many fines have been handed out, with bipartisan agreement. I doubt Amazon would be so audacious, and they'd eventually get reemed. Beyond that, politicians still seem to dispise Amazon for allegedly dodging taxes. How do you know you are playing their cost plus tax?   Retailers in the US currently only collect state sales tax on purchasers who are based in the same state they are in.  For example, our business is in NY so we charge NY state sales tax.  We do not charge sales tax for anyone living in any other state (or country). If your shipping address is in South America, the people you are buying from in the US should not be charging you any tax.  You may have to pay customs duties and fees, but these are not sales tax. It's been a PR free-for-all with these hurricanes.  It's kind of disgusting.  Google was giving free phone repairs to Pixels that nobody will ever use but they spent a whole day bragging about their good deed.  Many others did similar victory laps.