Bradley Partner Bruce Ely Quoted in Bloomberg BNA Daily Tax Report on Problems with Small Vendors and Marketplace Providers to SC DOR Tax Assessment

Bradley attorney Bruce Ely was quoted in the Bloomberg BNA Daily Tax Report on problems with small vendors and marketplace providers of a $12.5 million assessment from the South Carolina Department of Revenue for uncollected taxes, penalties and interest from third-party sales. Amazon began collecting sales tax for South Carolina on Jan. 1, 2016, after a five-year “safe harbor” on such assessments expired. But it is fighting the state over third-party collections even though it has agreed to do so in other jurisdictions.

The issue of taxing third-party sellers raises certain concerns about small vendors who use Amazon.com or another provider such as Ebay Inc. or Etsy Inc. to sell their goods or services, explained Ely.

“Will the states apply their sales thresholds to each and every vendor who uses a marketplace provider?” Or, “will the states apply the threshold at the provider level, which will very likely trigger a collection responsibility for all the small vendors?” Ely said.

The complete article, “Amazon’s Fight Against South Carolina’s Online Sales Tax Delayed,” appeared in the Daily Tax Report on October 9, 2018. (login required)