Online Tax Now Collected in Pa.

According to philly.com, Pennsylvania residents are starting to get letters stating that they owe sales tax for online purchases.

Philly.com quoted Cynthia Ragen, tax manager with Isdaner & Co. in Bala Cynwyd. Ragen stated that in 2018 the Supreme Court overturned a longstanding “physical presence” rule. The ruling gave states authority to impose sales tax on out-of-state sellers, Ragen said.

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Revenue is offering guidance to residents who have received letters claiming that sales tax is owed for online purchases.

“If you receive a notice from a business notifying you that you may owe Pennsylvania use tax on an online or catalog purchase, don’t be alarmed,” the Pa. Dept. of Revenue states on its website at http://www.revenue.pa.gov. “This is not a scam. Pennsylvania law requires the payment of use tax by any person who purchases taxable goods or services delivered into or used in Pennsylvania if sales tax is not collected by the vendor.”

The businesses sending the notices are required to send a report of these sales to the Department of Revenue.

According to the Pa. Dept. of Revenue, residents should use Line 25 of the PA-40 (Personal Income Tax Return) to report and remit the use tax along with their income tax payment.

“Use tax” reported and remitted as part of the return is considered timely filed if the income tax return is filed on time.

Or, residents may report or remit the use tax online. Residents who want to pay online will need to register for an e-Signature business tax account that will enable them to file a return and make payment from a bank account via the department’s “Online PA-1 Use Tax Return.”

Those with questions on how to properly complete the form should contact the Department of Revenue’s Bureau of Enforcement Planning, Analysis and Discovery at (717) 214-7287, selecting Option 1 – for “Use Tax.”

Residents may also make arrangements to pay the use tax electronically by calling the department’s Bureau of Enforcement Planning, Analysis and Discovery at (717) 214-7287 and selecting Option 1 – for “use tax.”